Information Technology in the

Netherlands

Who Uses IT
	About The Netherlands	Information technology has produced tremendous growth in the Netherlands and the Wall Street Journal referred to the county as “the Dutch miracle.” This has caused IT usage to soar in all sectors of the country from households to government. The total amount of external ICT expenditure in 1998 was NLG 21.5 billion, of which NLG 3.5 billion was spent by households and NLG 18.1 billion by the business market. Much of this growth has been spurred by the Government’s Information Communication Technology (ICT) policy that places ICT as an essential element for future growth. Households In 1956, there were four computers in the Netherlands a number that has grown to presently 4 million. Households spend on average NLG 3.5 billion dollars on ICT related expenses. The Dutch PC penetration rate of 45% gives the Netherlands the highest density of PC’s in Europe. Internet usage is also very strong as over 5 million Dutch citizens or 40% of the population have access to the Internet. Internet access in homes is high for the region at 25%; much of this is due to the fact that the telecommunications industry is very open and competitive. [1] Businesses IT usage in the business sector has seen large growth spurred by the presence of large corporations such as Philips Electronics. There are over 700 electronics firms in the country as well as over 7000 American firms that have established operations in the Netherlands. IT has also played a leading role in other industries such as medical technology where over 500 medical technology companies’ work on using IT to bring innovations to the industry. The business sector spends over NLG 18.1 billion on ICT.[2] Government The Dutch government has taken a leading role in increasing the use of ICT in the Netherlands and is working to serve as a model by improving their operations through ICT. Initiatives are in place to make 25% of government services available electronically by 2002. The government is working to improve services, cut costs, and redefine the way business is conducted. [3]
	Telecommunication Infrastructure
	Liberalization and Deregulation
	Internet Diffusion
	Electronic Commerce
	Hardware manufacturing
	Software development
	Who Uses IT
	IT Geographics
	IT Financing
	IT Labor Market
	Government Policies
	Legal Environment
	Transborder Data Flows
	Analysis: IT strengths and weaknesses
	Analysis :Impacts on the Business
	Sources and Links
	About the authors

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The MOGIT site	TheKogod School of Business	AmericanUniversity

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Last update: December 18, 2000

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[1] The Dutch Digital Delta

[2] www.electronex.com

[3] The Dutch Digital Delta