Access to telecommunications
Sophie Davies
Public
Seen by 357
Forms of telecommunications and how they are used have changed greatly over the last decade. These trends are expected to continue, so it is important that census data collected in this area remains relevant for the future, while retaining comparability.
Data on household access to a telephone is still important to collect. Although internet access has become more prevalent, in many households a telephone is still the only form of telecommunication available.
Whether information on fax access should continue to be collected in the census is questionable, as faxes are becoming obsolete due to widespread use of the internet.
We considered for the 2006 Census whether it was more appropriate to gather information on access to cell phones at an individual level. The report on this issue concluded that the question on the dwelling form currently met most users’ needs. To gather useful data on usage of specific devices would require a series of detailed questions not suited for inclusion in the census.
Our current recommendations relating to access to telecommunication systems
We recommend that access to telecommunication systems be included in the 2018 Census, but that information on fax access no longer be collected.
We recommend that access to telecommunication systems continues to be collected on the dwelling form.
See our preliminary view of 2018 Census content (pages 54-55) for a more detailed discussion on access to telecommunications information.
See 2013 Census information by variable for information on the access to telecommunications variable.
Keely Mon 4 May 2015 11:16PM
It looks like there are some key but different areas people are interested in: access to telecommunications, use of telecommunications and quality of telecommunications.
Just a reminder that we have the annual Internet Service Provider survey which looks at the infrastructure of Internet connections: types of connections, speed, data caps etc.
In the past Internet usage information such as social media use, use of government websites, e-education etc has been collected from the Household Use of ICT survey It has not yet been confirmed when the next release of this survey will be but it's great to see there is a strong desire for this information.
Keely Thu 7 May 2015 11:21PM
Just a note is to advise our customers that Household Use of ICT data will not be published in April 2016, as previously indicated.
Household Use of ICT data has been collected every three years as a supplement via the Household Labour Force Survey. We are currently exploring alternative collection options and data sources for future Household ICT data publications.
If you have any questions, please contact Jason at [email protected]
Paul Minett Sat 16 May 2015 11:57PM
I think the proposal at the moment is way 'underdone' for the importance that evolving telecommunications is likely to hold for the future. This is a huge topic, the importance of which goes way beyond whether a dwelling has a phone, or even a link to the internet. While it might be useful to have dwelling information for some purposes, I think the census should also look into this topic at an individual level. As a small example for policy implications: how much is funding of libraries impacted as people access books via mobile devices? I use libraries as an example because they are clearly 'location relevant', and the census-level quality of data becomes important, in a way that surveys do not provide sufficiently reliable granularity. I think there are lots of other ways in which data about uptake and use of personal location-aware mobile telecommunications devices will impact on service provision and related policy.
As an example, I have started a discussion on 'Mobile Phones and Mobility' on the transportation thread.
Paul Minett Mon 18 May 2015 10:10AM
For some reason the discussion item about 'Mobile Phones and Mobility' has been moved to the 'other' topic area, in case you were inspired to go looking for it.
John Russell Tue 19 May 2015 4:58AM
As has been noted, the question on the census form focuses on technology infrastructure that is available at a dwelling, rather than if or how it is used.
I would prefer to see a question, such as: "Has anyone in your household used a government service on-line (eg. pay car rego)?
That covers whether they can access the internet, and perhaps more importantly whether they are using it to interact with government services.
Keely Tue 19 May 2015 9:14PM
Mobility of Internet access and use of Internet services seem to be the key areas of interest so far when it comes to telecommunications.
Internet access has become a lot more personalised hence the desire for a more individualised approach when it comes to gathering this information.
The breadth of information when it comes to use of the Internet is vast which is why in the past we've dedicated a whole survey to it (Household Use of ICT).
Currently the Census focuses on access - if access to mobile Internet was included at an individual level, do you think it would be implied that they also have access to the myriad of services available?
Chris Bullen Wed 27 May 2015 4:40AM
My group of health researchers at the National Institute for Health Innovation thinks a question about fax access should now be retired. We would like to have representative national, regional and more local information on internet access
eg. questions such as:
- Can people connect to the internet?
if yes, how do they connect to the internet? Do they have access to smart devices that are connected to the internet?
John Russell Thu 28 May 2015 12:07AM
@keelyatstats Perhaps the individual level could focus on what on-line services (govt) the individual has used. Then the dwelling question could address the infrastructure (access methods such as UFB, mobile etc)?
Pushing these questions into a lesser-known and optional survey rather than putting them in the census suggests StatsNZ underestimate their significance to how people live and work.
Keely Sun 7 Jun 2015 11:25PM
Thanks for the feedback @chrisbullen and @johnrussell! So it sounds like how people connect to the Internet as well as what services people are using on the Internet are of interest.
What would this look like on the Census form? Access and type of Internet at the household level (eg. dial-up, DSL, fibre) then devices and services used at an individual level (tick all that apply)?
Do we need to know what devices people are using or just whether they're mobile or not?
Sounds like people are keen to see some individual level questions for access to telecommunications.
Guy Marriage · Mon 4 May 2015 8:37PM
Although in all reality, given the speed that comms advances are moving, A) there will be myriad new ways to connect in coming years, and B) people will become less aware of the means, all they will know is that they are connected. Trying to capture this fast moving topic is tricky. Long term trend though, is plain to see - likely no fixed lines at all soon.