France plans to offer 1.2 million of the country’s poorest citizens a computer with broadband Internet access for a daily fee of 1 euro (US$1.28), to ensure that they have access to the increasing number of government services available online.The French government has set ambitious targets for making public services available over the Internet, but is concerned that almost half the population still lacks regular access to the Internet. Just over half of French households now have a PC, and 38 percent of households have Internet access—more than 10 million of them with broadband. Including those who use it at work, more than half of all French citizens regularly use the Internet, according to government figures. However, the proportion of those online is much lower among the elderly and the poor—often those most in need of state-provided services. Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin announced the 1-euro-a-day plan after Tuesday’s meeting of the Interministerial Committee for the Information Society, which proposed the idea.Service providers will be encouraged to offer bundles consisting of a low-cost PC with software for Web browsing, security and productivity, home tuition for those who need it, and a broadband Internet connection at a tariff equivalent to 15 euros a month or less, all on a three-year contract. The government will guarantee the price of 1 euro a day for the poorest segment of the population, probably using the same selection criteria as a project that offers electricity at a special “basic needs” tariff. The price of 1 euro a day is highly symbolic: Other projects offer young people the chance to take lessons and pass their driving test for a euro a day, and in 2004, the government sponsored a project to offer university students a laptop for 1 euro a day. That project will continue, the government announced, with the goal of getting laptops into the hands of 35 percent of students. Between September 2004 and September 2005, the proportion of students with laptops rose from 8 percent to 22 percent, according the government delegation on Internet use.At the same meeting, the government agreed on plans to make it easier for rural inhabitants to get broadband Internet access, by supporting the rollout of Wimax wireless services where low population density makes the provision of DSL service uneconomic. The government also pledged its support for an antispam group, Signal Spam, which launched a public information site on Monday. Later this year, the group will begin operating a service for reporting unsolicited commercial e-mail.-Peter Sayer, IDG News Service (Paris Bureau)Check out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage. Related content brandpost Sponsored by FPT Software Time for New Partnership Paradigms to Be Future-fit By Veronica Lew Dec 06, 2023 5 mins Vendors and Providers brandpost Sponsored by BMC Why CIOs should prioritize AIOps in 2024 AIOps empowers IT to manage services by incorporating AI/ML into operations. By Jeff Miller Dec 06, 2023 3 mins IT Leadership opinion Generative AI in enterprises: LLM orchestration holds the key to success In the dynamic landscape of AI, LLMs represent a pivotal breakthrough. Unlike traditional AI, which demands frequent data updates, LLMs possess the ability to learn and adapt in real-time. This mirrors human learning and positions LLMs as essential f By Shail Khiyara Dec 06, 2023 10 mins Generative AI Artificial Intelligence brandpost Sponsored by Freshworks How gen AI is joining the holiday shopping season One year after the launch of ChatGPT, the retail industry is embracing generative AI to deliver a variety of benefits By Elliot Markowitz Dec 06, 2023 4 mins Generative AI Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe