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 in economic and social relations. This also means that the required information resources must be available and accessible. 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, information and communication technologies, and content resources. 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.

Individuals rely on social institutions and social infrastructure to acquire the necessary skills and develop their capacities to be able to effectively participate in society and realize their potential capabilities. Social infrastructure includes the diverse and broad array of institutions and services that provide for the commonly held and specific individual needs. Individuals rely on a number of community-based, regional and national organizations for this development, both formal institutions (e.g., schools) and informal (e.g., community service organizations). This social infrastructure needs to be well funded to meet a diversity of information and service needs to help individuals and communities overcome some of the economic and social divides. The intermediary role performed by these organizations will only be effective if it properly provides both offline and online service, and of comparable quality.

At a conceptual level, beyond the levels of individual and community economic and social development, these relations also centrally contribute to social cohesion. The scope of these resources and relationships range from the local, through the regional, to the national. This has implications for both local intermediaries involved in these processes, and for governments. In a normative view, social cohesion largely involves relationships, particularly at the community level, that underpin or are constituent of all of our social and economic activities. However, bringing in more of a sociological as opposed to economic perspective on cohesion, a tight relationship exists between social cohesion, human capital and, social and economic infrastructure. In particular, economic development relies on these others being well developed, progressive and sustainable over the long term.