Broadband Adoption in the United States and Korea: Business Driven Rational Model Versus Culture Sensitive Policy Model

Why is broadband more readily available in South Korea than in other countries? and, why are U.S. mass-market consumers not signing up for broadband access at the rate that they have been expected to? To provide answers for these questions, this study compares the adoption processes of the broadband access in the United States and Korea by employing the TPC model-a triangulation of technology, policy, and culture. It is found that the Koreans' rapid diffusion of the broadband access is the result of combining the government's culturally-sensitive ICT policy that promotes both the supply and the demand of the broadband (i.e., "fertilized soil") with the unique cultural traits including the sophisticated consumer tastes and preference, the sanctity of education, the densely populated living condition, and the emerging dynamism. It is also found that the broadband access in the United States has been adopted as quickly as even such rapidly adopted consumer technologies as TVs, VCRs, cell phones, CDs, and PCs. The claim of "slow adoption" in the United States is valid only when the number is compared to Korea, Germany, Sweden, Spain, Brazil, or Canada. Three broader implications were drawn from this comparative analysis as conclusions.