Digitization Compass 2018

Digitisation in Germany's urban regions has progressed much further than in rural areas.

This is one of the results of the Digitization Compass 2018, which Prognos carried out in cooperation with the index group. The study, which has been published exclusively in the Handelsblatt, evaluates how digital the 401 cities and districts are in each case.

The ranking is based on twelve indicators in three categories: "Labour market of digital professions", "Information and communication technology sector"and "Broadband supply". Each region was able to achieve a maximum of five stars.

The ranking shows: In all parts of Germany, digitization is well advanced, especially in the major cities. Among the top 20 there are five administrative districts which are, however, directly surrounding metropolises such as Munich or Stuttgart.

Throughout Germany there is a dichotomy. Almost half of the districts receive two or fewer stars. About three quarters of these circles are assigned to rural areas. One to two stars correspond to poor to less good chances in the course of digitization.

The category "digital infrastructure" shows that cities and districts that are ahead here do not necessarily score points in other important sub-areas as well. Examples are the cities of Weiden i. d. Oberpfalz, Kaufbeuren, Delmenhorst and Speyer.

"Our study clearly shows that a good broadband infrastructure is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for the digital fitness of a region,"says Prognos CEO Christian Böllhoff. For example, there are some cities and districts that achieve good overall results in the digitization compass despite comparatively poor broadband values. These include the Paderborn district, the Lake Constance district and the city of Darmstadt.

Find an interactive map of Germany with the results on the Handelsblatt website (in German):

www.handelsblatt.com/digitalisierungskompass  

Authors: 

Peter Kaiser, Bernhard Wankmüller (Prognos AG), index Gruppe