The information age has not so far contributed to a reduction of inequalities between people, regions and countries.
A major result of the information age thus far has been the further globalization of economic and particularly financial activity. It has contributed to a global culture of increased competition and increased risk. World-wide the information infrastructure has been used as a justification and a lever to achieve greater liberalization and privatization.
Where it has entered the social arena, information technology has not operated on a communal basis but rather on an individual one: personal computers rather than community access. To date it has served to concentrate wealth and power.
The introduction of information technology into developing countries can result in users becoming permanently indebted to (foreign) suppliers for help and maintenance, thus creating dependency. The information age has also seen a globalization of culture that is characterized by local cultures being submerged in a global trade of cultural ``goods and services'', although the potential exists to record and distribute previously inaccessible indigenous culture in new ways.
The technology should ``fit'' the circumstances in all respects, being not only technically and economically appropriate, but also culturally and socially integrated. The approach to the information society should be development that is focused on people.