ABOUT ARC FUND Since its establishment in 1991, ARC Fund has been an active stakeholder in the process of information society devel- opment in Bulgaria. It has been engaged in a series of policy and advocacy initiatives, public-private partnerships, awareness and public outreach campaigns, policy analyses, and implementation of pilot e-projects. Throughout the years ARC Fund has been a strong advocate for reforms in the regulatory framework of telecommunications and information society by drafting legislation and organizing high-level forums, expert workshops, and international conferences. It has published a number of books, analytical reports, educational brochures, and newsletters on some of the most topical issues of Bulgarian information society policies. ARC Fund was among the pioneering Internet service and content providers in the country in the mid-1990’s, and it currently maintains a broad portfolio of pub- lic service portals, such as www.online.bg, www.infosociety.bg, www.bgrazvitie.net, www.innovation.bg, www.southeasteurope.org and others. ARC Fund operates the e-Bulgaria Information Society Promotion Office (ISPO), a public-private partnership with the Ministry of Transport and Communications, serving as a one-stop-shop provider of IST knowledge and informa- tion to citizens, businesses and public administration. It also serves as secretariat to the Bulgaria Development Gateway (www.bgrazvitie.net)–a country node of the global Development Gateway initiative launched by the World Bank (www.developmentgateway.org). As a key component of its information society related activities, ARC Fund regularly monitors and analyzes the pen- etration and usage of new information and communication technologies, and their impact on Bulgarian society. This monitoring exercise is carried out in partnership with the Vitosha Research agency (www.vitosha-research.com), and by an inter-disciplinary IT Group, which involves several experts in sociology, economics, business administration, software engineering, mass media, and law. The IT Group’s main analytical product is the “e-Bulgaria” report, which is published for the second time since 2002. ARC Fund also specializes in the area of Innovation and Technology Transfer where its activities are focused on developing the national innovation system on three levels: (i) at sectoral level, providing support to companies and clusters through technology brokering, counseling and international technology transfers; (ii) at meso-level, assist- ing the development of regional innovation strategies, institutions and networks; and (iii) at macro-level, applying foresight methodologies to shape future national innovation policies. ARC Fund creates and shares innovation knowledge through a number of off- and online publications, and tools. It is piloting a comprehensive annual inno- vation index, Innovation.bg— a review of the country innovation system’s assets and policy challenges. Applied Research and Communications Fund 5 Alexander Zhendov Street, 1113 Sofia ARC FUND phone: +359 2 973 3000 fax: +359 2 973 3588 www.arcfund.net eBulgaria- EDITOR Todor Yalamov, IT Group Coordinator, ARC Fund CONTRIBUTORS Andrey Nonchev, Deputy Director, Vitosha Research Assen Totin, Development Manager, Bulgaria Online Dimitar Markov, Project Coordinator, Law Program, Center for the Study of Democracy Dinka Dinkova, Program Director, ARC Fund Martin Dimov, Research Analyst, Vitosha Research Ruslan Stefanov, Project Coordinator, Economic Program, Center for the Study of Democracy Tihomir Bezlov, Senior Research Fellow, Center for the Study of Democracy ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ARC Fund would like to acknowledge the valuable contributions of: Iliana Nikolova, Executive Director, Public Computer and Communications Center (PC3) Association, and Associate Professor, Head of Department on Information Technologies, Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics, Sofia University Elissaveta Gourova, Project Officer, Centre of European RTD Projects, Sofia University Ivaylo Georgiev, Project Manager, European Software Institute (ESI) Center Bulgaria Ivan Kolev, Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, Sofia University Nelly Stoyanova, Head of Department, Information Society and Technologies Directorate, Ministry of Transport and Communications Krastyu Mirski, former Deputy Director, Chief Field Operations Department, Telecommunication Development Bureau, International Telecommunication Union, Geneva Rossitsa Vassileva, former Director, Sofia Telecommunication Company Tinko Stoyanov, Professor, Technical University – Sofia, Plovdiv Campus Georgi Apostolov, Content Manager, ARC Fund Daniela Mineva, Project Officer, Economic Program, Center for the Study of Democracy Special thanks are also extended to the following institutional partners: Ministry of Transport and Communications ICT Development Agency Coordination Centre for Information, Communication and Management Technologies at the Council of Ministers Center for the Study of Democracy ISBN 954-90624-5-7 © ARC Fund, 2004 All rights reserved. 5 Alexander Zhendov Str. 1113 Sofia Phone +359 2 973 3000 Fax +359 2 973 3588 www.arcfund.net CONTENTS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . .6 E-ACCESS: AVAILABILITY, AFFORDABILITY, AND QUALITY OF NETWORK ACCESS TECHNOLOGIES . .10 1.TELECOMMUNICATION NETWORKS . .11 1.1. NATIONAL INTERNET CONNECTIVITY . .13 1.2. INTERNATIONAL INTERNET CONNECTIVITY . .14 2.INTERNET MARKET TRENDS . .15 2.1. INTERNET AFFORDABILITY . .18 3.QUALITY AND SECURITY OF SERVICES . .19 4.SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS . .20 E-SOCIETY . .22 1.PC AND INTERNET PENETRATION IN BULGARIAN SOCIETY . .23 1.1. COMPUTER ACCESS AND USAGE . .23 1.2. INTERNET ACCESS . .24 1.3. FACTORS INFLUENCING INTERNET USAGE . .24 1.4. FREQUENCY OF INTERNET USAGE . .25 2.MAIN TENDENCIES IN USING INTERNET OPPORTUNITIES . .26 2.1. ACCESS TO INTERNET CONTENT . .26 2.2. PERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS . .26 2.3. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE . .28 2.4. THE LANGUAGE BARRIER TO INTERNET PENETRATION . .28 2.5. THE INTERNET IN EVERYDAY LIFE . .29 3.SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS . .30 E-EDUCATION AND E-LEARNING . .32 1. AVAILABILITY OF ICT IN BULGARIAN SCHOOLS . .33 1.1. COMPUTERS IN SCHOOLS . .33 1.2. INTERNET ACCESS . .35 1.3. WEB PRESENCE . .36 1.4. ICT TRAINING . .37 1.5. FUNDING FOR ICT AT SCHOOLS . .37 2.ICT IN UNIVERSITIES . .38 3.UNIVERSITY PLATFORMS FOR E-LEARNING . .38 4.LIFE-LONG LEARNINGWITHANEMPHASIS ON ICT . .40 5.SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS . .42 E-BUSINESS . .44 1.COMPUTERS IN THE BUSINESS SECTOR . .46 2.INTERNET USAGE BY BUSINESS . .47 3.AVAILABILITY OF E-PAYMENT INSTRUMENTS . .50 4.ICT EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES . .52 5.SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS . ..