This research also found preliminary signs that access to the Internet was levelling off for upper middle and upper income households, but that some growth, albeit slow, continued among the lower income household segments.

By 2000, other digital divides had been identified and were gaining currency in policy discussions. These include divides between connected and unconnected businesses; between the developed and developing nations; between those using narrow band and broad band; and divides based on demographics such as gender and age, among others. This study is mainly concerned with access to, and the ability to use, basic computer technology and the Internet, but contextualizes this analysis to some degree within some of the emerging broader divides.

Attention to the Internet divide has been somewhat overrepresented in debates about Canada as an information society. Internet and computer access and competency are key constituents of successful participation in technology-based social and economic activities. However, these are building blocks linked to a broader complexity of just as important, if not more important, capabilities. Individuals need to be literate on several levels, including numeracy, prose, interpersonal communications, and have different levels of technical proficiency in order to function in society and the workplace and have the flexibility to continually adapt to changes in work and society. The Internet and computers have joined a widely diverse basket of supportive resources that facilitate these developments (including ongoing learning), and help maintain participation.

In this broader view, the digital divide encompasses the ability of individuals, social organizations, businesses and communities to effectively respond to changes in an ‘information society’ and participate successfully. Digital divides, involving individuals as well as organizations, necessarily raise the question of inequalities relating to income, skills, education in the broadest sense, geography and region, and information and communication technologies. Digital divide inequalities also concern the capacity of community groups and organizations, businesses, and local government to implement activities for individuals and community-wide social and economic development.