Lord Carter’s interim report 'Digital Britain' released last week looked at how best Britain can boost its digital and communications sectors. It's a lenghty report covering many topics, from the development of broadband and its required infrastructure, to digital radio and public service broadcasting but what does it mean for those currently not online? 

The report indicates that the average adult in Britain spends just under half their waking life accessing communications tools such as TV, radio and of course, the internet. The communications sector is the 3rd largest in the country, the study notes; it is up there with the energy and finance industries and is just as vital to Britain’s economy, accounting for around 8% of GDP each year.

The web is a huge platform for promotional efforts and, as the country’s consumers spend so many hours accessing web pages, the marketers have followed them there.

Not earth shattering news but an important part of the 'Digial Britain' report. The internet is catching up with the high street which we have also known for sometime and with the recent Woolworths closure and global credit crunch, the Internet is overtaking the high street in many ways. This report is a wake up call to those businesses that are not currently online to get thier acts together if they want to survive in the present climate.

Digital Britain can make us internationally competitive. Thanks to the internet and the communications sector more widely, British companies, even smaller firms, can compete within an international market. The internet really is the great leveller – an innovative approach to online marketing and a decent business idea and there is no limit to what a firm can achieve.

Lord Carter recognises that without a decent digital infrastructure, this country would fall behind in competitiveness, resulting in an economic loss. What is true for Britain is true for individual companies - in the increasingly wide world of the web, successful companies will be the ones firing on all digital cylinders.

We are still at the beginning of the Age of the Internet and there is still time to catch up. A company which has not yet made the most of the web is not hopelessly after the party and it is not too late to invest.

Obviously, this report has not been about SEO, online marketing, or even just the web. It is about the implications of a digital revolution on the entire country. Those companies not currently online will almost certainly fall back behind competitors online. The report illustrates just how essential the digital world is to Britains economy and therefore how important it is to every business in Britain.