Monitoring the Information Society - Statistics Finland

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Monitoring the Information Society - Statistics
Finlands Role in National Strategies and Action
Plans

• UNCTAD Expert meeting on Measuring Electronic
  Commerce as an Instrument for the Development of
  Digital Economy
• Geneva, 8-10 September 2003
• Lea Parjo
• Information Society Statistics
• lea.parjo_at_stat.fi

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Nordic welfare state - basic security makes the
change possible

• A homogenous social structure
• Social equality
• Stability in society
• A public, free, high-quality education system
• Public health care, mainly free, independent of
  employment status
• Basic pension regardless of work status

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Information society - strategies and action plans

• In 1995 the Finnish government took a position on
  the goals and actions to be undertaken to develop
  the information society
• The Government placed Statistics Finland in
  charge of monitoring the progress
• The strategy in 1995 -gteconomy and technology
• Revised strategy in 1997 -gtpeople, quality of
  life, sustainable development
• 1999 emphasis -gtskills, research, education,
  services and content in information networks
• eEurope benchmarking
• 17 September 2003a new Government programme for
  the information society

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Information society - items of policy interest

• SMEs coping with global competition
• ICT and electronics industry in manufacturing and
  foreign trade
• The use of ICT in all sectors of the economy
• Electronic commerce
• Digital divide gender, age, geographic areas
• Marginalisation, alienation ???
• Enterprises invest in their competitiveness
• State authorities measures e.g. to support RD
• Citizens are curious but also critical

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Tasks of a statistical office

• To provide accurate information describing social
  and economic phenomena
• Impartiality
• Confidentiality
• Results must be publicly available
• The role of information provided by private
  sector ???

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Basic requirements for production of statistics
on the information society

• Interrelated to the operating framework of the
  NSI
• Consistent with the existing systems
• Concepts, classifications and framework
• Data sources
• Feasibility and cost-effectiveness
• Ad-hoc surveys ltgttime series
• Repetition intervals

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Steps to provide new statistics

• Good basic infrastructure of official statistics
• Reprocessing and reclassifying
• Complementing data from other sources
• New variables to existing surveys
• New surveys

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Information society statistics - some milestones
in Finland

• 1996 a pilot project Statistics on the
  Information Society --gt 1997 On the Road to the
  Finnish Information Society
• 1999 On the Road II 2001 On the Road III
• 2003 On the Road IV
• 1996 a pilot survey the Finns and the future
  Information Society --gt1997 The Finns and
  Modern Information Technology
• 1999 Mobile Phones and Computer as parts of
  Everyday Life in Finland
• 2001 the volume of e-commerce in enterprises for
  2000
• 2001 the volume on consumers Internet commerce
  for 2000
• 2002 THE EVOLUTION OF THE INFORMATION SOCIETY
  How information society skills and attitudes have
  changed in Finland in 1996?2002

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Measuring e-commerce in enterprises

• Statistics Finland yearly surveys since 1999
• Use of computers and the Internet
• Use of electronic commerce, especially over the
  Internet
• Subjects of interest change - time series are
  needed, however
• Model questionnaire available
• Size classes?? ISIC classes??
• Data availability in enterprises

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Experiences when surveying e-commerce in
enterprises

• Relatively easy to answer tick-box on qualitative
  questions
• Relatively difficult to give figures or estimates
  on break-downs and monetary value
• Technology based questions problematic
• EDI gtlt Internet commerce

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Measuring consumer e-commerce

• Statistics Finland biannual surveys since 2000
• A random sample from Central Population Register
• Policy needs volume and items (forecasts were
  high)
• Number of Internet users and net shoppers
• Other channels for remote shopping
• Mobile commerce
• Model questionnaire available
• Motivations and barriers

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Reasons for not using net commerce, spring 2003

• of users of the Internet, who had never used
  Internet commerce
• Yes No DNK
• Prefer to shop in person, like to see the
  product 90 9 1
• Have no need 79 20 1
• Worried about giving credit card details
• over the Internet 74 22 3
• Too long delivery times 9 56 35
• Goods and services needed are not available
• on the Internet 11 55 34
• Too expensive 6 57 37

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Experiences when surveying consumers e-commerce

• Surveying any not-an-everyday-activity
• Sample size
• Recall period
• Easily too long lists of alternatives for
  products and services