Abstract
This paper is based on the data of the AsiaBarometer 2006, a survey conducted by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The research focuses on the digital inequality within the age groups of respondents, specifically two: 20-29 and 30-39 cohorts. Results have shown that Japanese youth is more reluctant to use the Internet than youth in other developed Asian countries. The main explanation behind this slow diffusion of the technology among youth in Japan may lie in the levels of internationalization (globalization) of the country, including the low levels of the English language proficiency, which is still the leading language of the Internet. Considering that these young people represent the main human capital and the future of the Japanese nation, the policies that promote wider adoption of technologies, especially, the Internet, should be taken promptly to avoid the prospect of Japan's becoming an ICT laggard among developed countries.
