Modeling Internet Diffusion in Developing Countries

Despite the increasing importance of the Internet, there is little work that addresses the degree to which the models and theories of Internet diffusion in developed countries can be applied to Internet diffusion in developing countries. This paper presents the first attempt to address this question through modeling Internet diffusion via a set of variables from social, technical, and environmental determinants. A set of regression analyses and a radar graph are used to analyze the hypotheses. The findings suggest that the factors affecting the Internet diffusion in developed countries do not provide a good fit for modeling Internet diffusion in developing countries. Alternative approaches to modeling Internet diffusion in developing countries are suggested.