Vodka and saunas...
...and other gratuitous stereotypes, doesn't take away from the technological success of Finland. Nor the (hugely ambitious) depth of their broadband ambitions for the public.As in all of the public.
Kudos to the Finnish government, which has just introduced lawsRead that and weep.guaranteeing broadband access to every person living in Finland (5.5 million people, give or take).
This is reportedly a first worldwide.
Starting July 2010, every person in Finland will have the right to a one-megabit broadband connection as an intermediate step, says the Ministry of Transport and Communications. By the end of 2015, the legal right will be extended to an impressive 100 Mb broadband connection for everyone.
Finland is the country that is home to Nokia and who have sought to find practical uses for every element of IT in an effort to benefit the entire population
We are the country where broadband is dependent upon tidal conditions.
Anyone know when the next flight to Helsinki is?
11 comments:
Bet ComCon, WIE and the others in the group will wring their hands and say, as per usual, "But ... but ... the Outer Hebrides is remote and Finland is not, that's why it's easier for them."
Which is a nonsense. On the Finland side, they put IT and education at their heart of their socio-economic structure. Sami Reindeer herders use broadband coms, north of the Arctic circle, in their work and life. Effective use of IT cuts across the whole education sector; it's not a coincidence that Finland is regularly ranked as having the best educational attainment in the world.
On the Outer Hebrides side - this place is not remote. You can be on the mainland after a short boat trip. There's no mountain ranges here. There's no heavy snow or months of freezing temperatures. It's a bit wet, windy and boggy - not as much as other places which have, already, got fast broadband.
Iceland. Faroe Islands. *They* are remote i.e. far away from large populations and land masses. And they've got superfast broadband. How? Why?
There's no excuse, really none at all, why the Outer Hebrides should not have had *FAST* broadband installed, for all properties, years ago.
Hmmm... (from CNET):
'But Finland's definition of "access" to broadband is a little fuzzy. According to the Helsinki Times when it reported the 100Mb target last year, the Finnish government said that no household "would be farther than 2 kilometers from a connection capable of delivering broadband Internet with a capacity of at least 100 megabits of data a second." It did say, though, that "about 2,000 (households) in far-flung corners of the country" wouldn't be included. Ostensibly, Finland plans to keep that same distribution when its 1Mb broadband access is implemented.'
I had some visits to Finland which were not tourist trips. I could not believe the development of their education and medical systems.
Their achievements are an embarrassment to any community which uses low population, geographic conditions, or lack of resources as an excuse of why the Hebrides are such an abandoned backwater.
Step up to the plate all you useless w*ankers that pose as leaders and innovators in the community.
That includes CNE, HIE, sundry community councils, councillors, etc., who cannot see beyond the dreary status quo.
Yes, there are a few capable individuals who do strive for the betterment of the community; unfortunately any spark is swiftly isolated and snuffed out.
Wake up before it is too late!
Why the picture of DJ Mcsween manning the hand pump in the members lounge????
6:43 - i wish, OH HOW I WISH, that only 2000 households were excluded from UK
In France Internet access has been legally clarified as a basic human right. The same goes for Estonia and Greece.
In South Korea, the plan is for a country-wide 100Mb net access from every home. In parts of Seoul, that has already happened.
And then you have Australia, a country with much, much greater distances and 'remoteness' than any part of Britain. Fast broadband all round for them too.
Give it to 2012 and Britain will be outside the top 30, possibly the top 50, countries when it comes to broadband access/speed.
So the grass is greener..... Beware of what you wish for! All you people peering over the fence to look at Finland are presumably driven by the classic motives of health & happiness, even if expressed in the more mundane elements of broadband speed. Tie that in with a suicide rate in Finland (second highest in the world after Japan) 270% higher than the UK (although we'd have to modulate that percentage down for Scotland) and judge whether your broadband speed is really such a vital life-enhancer.
5:26 Um, I'd take their education, health and technology performance over ours any day. Finland, like Scotland, had a major problem with health a few decades ago. But unlike Scotland, the problem has been largely contained, and now their limits are lower.
Their rate of suicides is also declining, as the treatments for SAD and alcoholism improve. It's not a perfect country - rather a lot of their lakes are way too polluted from paper and timber mills - but they tend to fix major social problems within a generation.
7.49
Excellent place clearly, if you can avoid topping yourself. Repeat: suicide rate 270% higher than the UK (source: Economist October 2009) Me, I'd rather suffer slower broadband.
6.50 - and how does the UK suicide rate compare with that of Scotland, or even that of the Highlands and Islands?
Are you also postulating that there's a link between having broadband and suicide rates? There's a research paper in there for someone.....
Ignore the ability of Finland to deliver at your peril.
Finnish language is unique and unrelated to any other european tongue, culture is not to be confused with any other northern european state.
Finland repelled both Nazi and Soviet incursion in WW2 and afterwards with extreme brutal force.
A unique and special country whose vast forest is sustainably managed.
I'd like to live there.
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