Abstract
LAN Houses1 have featured as key locations for thousands of Brazilians who otherwise would have no access to the internet. Thus, the scope of this study is to investigate the implementation and sustainability trajectory of a LAN House from an actor-network theory (ANT) perspective. In order to achieve this, single-case study methodology was adopted to address the implementation and sustainability of a LAN House in Jardim Catarina, city of São Gonçalo in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The result of this investigation supports the importance of government programs and actions as key actors to implement and sustain these endeavours. Lastly, it becomes clear that a LAN House is not actually a digital inclusion agent, despite its relevance to regions with lower rates of income, since the owner performs the role of 'digital dealer', whereby most of LAN House users are precluded from being digitally included.
Highlights
Brazil has expended considerable efforts to provide its citizens with access to information, digital technology and other benefits generated by Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), with the objective of enhancing the social and economic development of the country [1]
Based on what has been presented about Actor-Network Theory, one can perceive that this approach is applicable in Information Systems research
The setting up of the LAN House is considered a moment of relevant translation as it marks the implementation of the paid access center, i.e. how this network was formed with its associations and interactions
Summary
Brazil has expended considerable efforts to provide its citizens with access to information, digital technology and other benefits generated by Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), with the objective of enhancing the social and economic development of the country [1]. There are around 100,000 LAN Houses in the country, with 87% of users belonging to lower income classes, i.e. people who would not have access to the World Wide Web if it were not for the existence of this type of commercial institution [3,4]. Notwithstanding their apparent importance, there are few studies on the success of LAN Houses in Brazil, in terms of their implementation and sustainability in the national context. The research question of this work is: “How have the implementation and sustainability trajectories of LAN Houses been in Brazil, from an Actor-Network Theory (ANT) perspective?”
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