Information and communications technology

Information and communications technology (ICT) means much the same as information technology (IT). It puts extra focus on unified communications. It joins telecommunications, such as telephone lines and Wireless signals, with computers. ICT also includes enterprise software, middleware, and storage and audiovisual tools. These tools help people access, store, send, understand and change information.

ICT also describes how audiovisual systems and telephone networks are joining with computer networks through the same cables or links. This convergence can save a lot of money, because one system can handle cabling, signals and management. ICT is an umbrella term that covers many communication devices, such as radio, television, cell phones, computers, network hardware and satellite systems. It also includes services like video conferencing and distance learning. Older, non-electronic tools, such as paper communication, are included too.

ICT is a broad subject, and its ideas keep changing. It covers any product that can store, find, change, process, send or receive information electronically in digital form. Examples include personal computers, smartphones, digital television, email and robots. The Skills Framework for the Information Age is one of many models used to describe and manage the skills that ICT workers need in the 21st century.

Etymology

Researchers have used the phrase "information and communication technologies" since the 1980s. The short form "ICT" became popular after Dennis Stevenson used it in a report to the UK government in 1997. It was then used in the revised National Curriculum for England, Wales and Northern Ireland in 2000. In 2012, the Royal Society suggested that the term "ICT" should no longer be used in British schools, because it had come to have too many negative meanings. Since 2014, the National Curriculum has used the word computing, which reflects the addition of computer programming to the curriculum.

The phrase has spread to many countries. The United Nations has a "United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force" and an internal "Office of Information and Communications Technology".

Monetization

Around the world, about US$3.8 trillion was spent on IT in 2017. Spending has grown by less than 5% a year since 2009. The whole ICT field was expected to grow by 5% in 2018. The fastest growth, about 16%, was expected in new technologies such as IoT, Robotics, AR/VR, and AI. By 2022, the amount spent is estimated to be just over US$6 trillion.

In 2014, the US federal government's IT budget was nearly $82 billion. As a share of company income, IT costs have grown 50% since 2002. This puts pressure on IT budgets. Of a company's IT budget, about 75% goes to everyday running costs that "keep the lights on" in the IT department. About 25% goes to building new technology.

Technological capacity

The world's ability to store information grew from 2.6 (optimally compressed) exabytes in 1986 to 15.8 in 1993, over 54.5 in 2000, and to 295 (optimally compressed) exabytes in 2007. By 2014, it was some 5 zettabytes. In 2007, this would fill 1.25 stacks of CD-ROM reaching from the earth to the moon. In 2014, it would fill 4,500 stacks of printed books reaching from the earth to the sun.

The world's ability to receive information through one-way broadcast networks, like radio and television, was 432 exabytes (optimally compressed) in 1986. It grew to 715 (optimally compressed) exabytes in 1993, 1.2 (optimally compressed) zettabytes in 2000, and 1.9 zettabytes in 2007. The ability to share information through two-way telecommunication networks, like phone calls, was 281 petabytes (optimally compressed) in 1986. It grew to 471 petabytes in 1993, 2.2 (optimally compressed) exabytes in 2000, 65 (optimally compressed) exabytes in 2007, and some 100 exabytes in 2014. The ability to compute information with general-purpose computers guided by people grew from 3.0 × 10^8 MIPS in 1986 to 6.4 x 10^12 MIPS in 2007.

Sector in the OECD

This list shows OECD countries and how much of their total value added came from the ICT sector in 2013.

ICT Development Index

The ICT Development Index ranks countries by how much they use and have access to ICT. In 2014, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) released the latest rankings. Denmark was in first place, and South Korea was second.

The top 30 countries included most high-income countries, where people generally have a higher quality of life. These included countries in Europe and other places such as Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Japan, Macao (China), New Zealand, Singapore, and the United States. Almost all of the countries surveyed improved their ranking that year.

The WSIS process and development goals

On 21 December 2001, the United Nations General Assembly approved Resolution 56/183. This supported holding the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). The summit was meant to talk about the good chances and the challenges of today's information society. The resolution connected the summit to the goal in the United Nations Millennium Declaration. That goal was to use ICT to help reach the Millennium Development Goals. It also said that many groups should work together, including civil society, the private sector, and governments.

To help bring ICT to every part of the world where people live, 2015 was set as the deadline for reaching the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). World leaders agreed on these goals in 2000.

In education

ICT works best in education when it is built into pedagogy, or teaching methods. Using ICT together with Writing to Learn helped improve reading and math skills more than traditional methods alone or ICT alone. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), a division of the United Nations, supports ICT in education to help more people have fair access to learning. Even with more funding and new technology, many teachers do not yet use ICT well in everyday lessons. Old habits, feelings about computers, and how comfortable teachers feel with them can all make a difference.

Main article: Mobile learning for refugees

Language and reading barriers can keep refugees from going to school, especially outside camp settings. Mobile language learning apps can help refugees with reading, learning other languages, and translation. ICT has been used to improve education in Sub-Saharan Africa since the 1960s, starting with television and radio. By 2015, the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project had given laptops to millions of students and teachers. Using ICT in classrooms, often called M-Learning, has relied heavily on mobile phones, which many families already use. Progress is still slow, and many children in the region were not yet in school.

Today, many people around the world use the Internet. In 2025, about 74% of the world's population was online. Newer devices include the Apple Watch, the Nike+ FuelBand, and Google TV. Still, many people were not yet online, and most of them lived in developing countries. ICT also helps accelerated pluralism in new social movements. Bruce Bimber used this term to describe how the internet speeds up the forming of issue groups and their actions. ICTs can help gain grassroots support for a cause.

In government

Governments use ICT in many ways. Francis Maude, a UK government minister, supported the use of open standards in government IT. In 2012, he said that "Government must be better connected to the people it serves and partners who can work with it - especially small businesses, voluntary and community organisations." ICT can also help governments handle complaints from the public. Governments are now making long-term ICT plans. The U.S. Department of State's goals for 2024 to 2026 had four main parts: better cybersecurity, system updates, clearer data management, and more digital skills training for workers. Plans like these help governments keep their digital information safe from security risks that keep changing.

In health care

Telehealth is one way ICT is used in health care. A review found that its results are, or can be, as good as care given in person. It also found that the amount of health care people use stays about the same. People first imagined this kind of care as early as 1925.

ICT also helps in other ways. During the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers used ICT tools to study how people felt on social media. They used computer programs to read many posts and look for patterns of fear or trust around the world. Other areas include Artificial intelligence in healthcare, mHealth, Clinical decision support system and expert system, Health administration and hospital information system, and other health information technology and health informatics.

In science

ICT helps scientists, researchers, and students at universities and colleges. It is used in these ways:

• Internet research
• Online research methods
• Science communication and communication between scientists
• Scholarly databases
• Applied metascience

Models of access

Scholar Mark Warschauer created a "models of access" framework for studying how people can reach information and communication technology (ICT). In his book, he describes three models: devices, conduits, and literacy. A device is something a person owns, such as a phone or computer. A conduit is a connection, such as a telephone or internet line. Warschauer says devices and conduits are not enough on their own, and literacy is also needed. Together, the three models cover twelve criteria for "Real Access" to ICT. A non-profit organization called Bridges.org came up with these criteria in 2005.

Warschauer points out that owning a device can hide how unequal access really is. The Pew Research Center reports that most Americans own a smartphone, but many scholars think real access in the United States is lower than that. Connections often differ depending on where people live, and the costs can be hard for families with less money. Many people now use smartphones to get online instead. Warschauer also uses research by Sylvia Scribner and Michael Cole, who studied the Vai people of Liberia, who have their own local script. Their work found that literacy was not simply divided between people who had it and people who did not. Warschauer argues that ICT literacy works in a similar way and needs many resources. He concludes that good access depends on physical, digital, human, and social resources. When ICT is used well, it can help build these resources. When it is used poorly, it can make exclusion worse.

Environmental impact

See also: Category:Environmental technology and Information and communication technologies for environmental sustainability

In the early 21st century, ICT services and electronic devices grew very quickly. The number of internet servers grew about 1000 times, to 395 million, and is still growing. This growth follows Moore's law, which says that ICT development grows by 16–20% each year. That means it doubles about every four to five years. Making and using these products affects the environment a lot. In 2008, software and hardware development and production created the same amount of CO₂ emissions as all air travel in the world. ICT has both good and bad sides. Studies found that in OECD countries, a 1% increase in ICT capital reduced energy use by 0.235%. However, as more digitization happens, more energy is used. In OECD countries, a 1% increase in internet users raised electricity use per person by 0.026%. In emerging countries, the effect was more than four times as high. Scientists predict that ICT could use up to 30,700 TWh in 2030, which is 20 times more than in 2010.

To deal with these problems, the EU commission plans to carefully track and report the GHG emissions of ICT platforms, countries, and infrastructure. It also supports international rules for reporting and following them, to make the sector more open. Scientists also suggest investing more in ICT to use its power to reduce CO₂ emissions. They also suggest coordinating ICT, energy, and growth policies more effectively. The Coase theorem suggests investing where it costs the least to avoid emissions, such as in developing countries. These countries have lower technology standards than high-tech countries. In this way, ICT can reduce environmental damage from economic growth and energy use. It can do this by helping communication and infrastructure work better. ICTs could also help with environmental issues, including climate change, in many ways beyond education.