Caroline Rizza is a lecturer and researcher at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Télécommunications (Paris). She explains why a new deprived class has emerged with the Internet generation.

In what way is the information society transforming social practices?

The information society is based on individual, interactive media such as the Internet, and constitutes a real information revolution as it has completely changed the way of processing and storing information. In addition, it alters the way "organisations" and society function.

This new communication prompts a restructuring of society based on the implementation of ICTs (connection and transmission of information) on the one hand, and putting individuals and groups of individuals in touch with each other through the circulation of information on the other hand.

We prefer the term "communication society", as it allows us to address the issue of social change through ICTs and the Internet, and to give perspective to the importance of "information communication", focusing on the "communication relationship" that should result from it.

Is the digital divide a new form of inequality?

The digital divide is another layer in the manifestation of the socio-economic and cultural inequalities that already existed in industrial society. It combines inequalities at the level of access ("economic capital") and disparities in terms of knowledge and know-how ("social capital" and "cultural capital").

First and foremost, the digital divide is an educational divide, the causes of which are more social than technological. The information society generates a deprived class which it leaves on the sidelines – the info-poor, who perpetuate the social divide that already exists. This breed of outcasts is doomed to failure and poverty in this society, which is now ruled by information and knowledge, resources that the info poor do not have access to. Meanwhile, at the heart of the information society, the info-rich have networked and enjoy the benefits of the knowledge economy.

So, should development policies take this into account?

A communication society with two faces is taking shape. One face comprises the info-rich, who have access to ICTs and the knowledge needed to use them and receive the messages they carry; these people can communicate with the rest of the world and play a part in it. The other face is where the info-poor reside. They do not have access to ICTs or the Internet and therefore can’t act in a world which is now governed by information. These "info-rich" and "info-poor" become the "info haves" and "info have-nots" of society.

The concept of "digital literacy" must become a reality and a priority in development policies, because on top of the recurrent problems of poor education and illiteracy are appearing the gaps caused by the establishment of social and cultural exchanges limited to certain geographical regions and certain layers of the population.