E-Government is not just e-business on a larger scale. One of the most fundamental differences is that whereas businesses can, by and large, choose their customers, government cannot. The debate over the so-called "digital divide" is like the ghost at the e-government feast. For e-government to succeed fully, the dream of Internet access for all has to become a reality. Governments are well aware that large and expensive e-projects will command little support if only a privileged minority benefits. As David Ag-new of the Toronto-based Governance in the Digital Economy Project, which is supported by eight big IT firms and 20 national and local governments, ar- gues: "If putting government online is just a way of reinforcing access for people who probably already have more opportunity to access government and decision-makers, then it hasn't really been much of an advance after all."
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