Only 28% of UK small and medium-sized enterprises have a website, according to a survey by Sage Software, even though 59% recognise the business potential a website can bring.
In this regard, the UK lags behind its mains partners. In France, 31% of small and medium-sized enterprises have a website. The figure is 37% for Germany and the US.
In a separate development, the government has announced plans to close what it calls the digital divide — the advantage enjoyed by technologically equipped citizens over their less equipped colleagues. The government has set a target of everyone having an e-mail address by 2005.
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