Cultural facilities expand their online presence, but the provision of Internet for the public is still limited

Survey by CGI.br presents new data on electronic devices used in these institutions and their compliance with the LGPD

The universalization of Internet access and its availability to the public remain challenges for a significant portion of Brazilian cultural facilities. This is pointed out by the 4th edition of TIC Cultura, a survey by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br) conducted by the Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) of the Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br). 

The survey shows that universal use of the Internet in libraries (76%) and preserved sites (74%) has not been achieved. As for the provision of free Wi-Fi to the public, it was less frequently reported in museums (40%) and preserved sites (28%). Among cultural facilities, only 44% of libraries and 34% of cultural points provide computers for the public. The proportion is only 6% among preserved sites and 9% in theaters. 

"The low availability of ICT devices and free Wi-Fi access for the public limits the potential of institutions to function as spaces for digital inclusion. The data reinforce the need to improve connectivity in cultural facilities," notes Alexandre Barbosa, manager of Cetic.br. 

For the first time, the survey investigated the origin of the devices used in the facilities – whether they are owned by the organization or personal (employees'). The use of desktop computers and notebooks is mostly organizational. In the case of cell phones, the use of personal devices is more prevalent: 85% of cultural points and 68% of preserved sites reported that the device used by the organization was owned by the employees. 

Online Presence     
The survey also shows that in 2022, cultural facilities expanded their online presence through social networks or online platforms. The largest increases were observed in cinemas (rising from 85% in 2020 to 90% in 2022) and cultural points (82% in 2020 to 89% in 2022). The presence was lower among libraries (37% had profiles on social networks or online platforms). 

The cultural institutions with the most own websites are cinemas (75%), cultural points (55%), and archives (60%). Cinemas (29%) are the most likely to offer applications for mobile phones and tablets, followed by archives (13%). 

Among the activities most performed by cultural facilities on websites and social networks are: responding to received comments and questions – practiced by 83% of cinemas and 81% of cultural points – and promoting programming – an activity carried out by 85% of cinemas and 83% of cultural points. On the other hand, the least common were: publishing videos and audios or podcasts produced, selling products and services, and conducting lives or real-time online broadcasts. The sale of products and services through websites or social networks was the least performed activity by libraries (3%), museums (13%), and archives (15%). 

TIC Cultura 2022 also investigated the offering of workshops or training activities for the public, either in-person or online. Only preserved sites (3%), cinemas (3%), and cultural points (1%) reported offering only distance access. In-person only offerings were reported at higher proportions by theaters (52%), cultural points (45%), and museums (36%). Cultural points (47%), archives (38%), and museums (30%) stood out for promoting more training activities in both modes, in-person and distance. 

Digitization of Collections
Most cultural facilities have diverse collections, but processes of digitization and availability of these collections to the public are reported at lower proportions. Among those that digitize or have digitized their collections, archives (84%), museums (68%), and cultural points (74%) stand out. However, the challenge of making them available on the Internet for the public persists: archives (64%) and cultural points (53%) are the facilities that most provide their collections online. 

“Lack of funding is the main challenge for the digitization of collections. The survey also identified that the lack of qualified staff, storage capacity, or hosting for the digitized materials are also significant barriers,” explains Barbosa. 

Fundraising    
The survey shows still limited use of digital technologies for fundraising. The use of platforms or social networks for this purpose was mentioned by 17% of cultural points, 13% of cinemas, and only 3% of museums and 4% of theaters. In 2022, a significant part of cultural facilities relied on government resources, although non-governmental funding sources were relevant for some types of equipment, such as cinemas. These received resources from the sale of products and services (69%) and from private companies (20%). 

Privacy and Data Protection
The adaptation of cultural facilities to the General Data Protection Law (LGPD) was also investigated for the first time by TIC Cultura, which found that 48% of archives and 33% of cinemas offered internal training on privacy and personal data protection, while the proportion in libraries was only 10%. Considering external training on the topic, cinemas and archives were also the facilities most concerned with paying for external courses for their employees – 17% and 20%, respectively. 

“Building internal capacities is crucial for developing a culture of data protection within organizations. The survey indicates that an important portion of cultural facilities still does not take advantage of the potential of technologies to expand the offer of services and activities and for cultural access in Brazil. There is still much room for improvement,” concludes the manager of Cetic.br|NIC.br. 

About TIC Cultura
Conducted since 2016, TIC Cultura investigates access, adoption, and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in Brazilian cultural facilities. The data for the 4th edition of the survey was collected through telephone interviews with 1,966 managers of cultural facilities – randomly selected based on existing official records – between April and September 2022. Among the types of cultural facilities investigated are archives, preserved sites, libraries, cinemas, museums, cultural points, and theaters. 

For the complete list of indicators, visit: https://cetic.br/pt/pesquisa/cultura/indicadores/. The electronic book of the survey, which includes data and analysis, as well as articles by experts on this topic, is available here.

About Cetic.br   
The Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) of NIC.br is responsible for producing indicators and statistics on Internet access and use in Brazil, disseminating periodic analyses and information about the network's development in the country. Cetic.br|NIC.br is also a Regional Center for Studies under the auspices of UNESCO, completing 18 years of operation in 2023. More information at https://cetic.br/.

About the Brazilian Network Information Center – NIC.br         
The Brazilian Network Information Center — NIC.br (https://nic.br/) is a private, non-profit civil entity responsible for operating the .br domain, allocating IP numbers, and registering Autonomous Systems in the country. NIC.br implements the decisions and projects of the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee - CGI.br since 2005, and all resources collected come from activities of a predominantly private nature. It conducts actions and projects that bring benefits to the Internet infrastructure in Brazil. NIC.br includes: Registro.br (https://registro.br), CERT.br (https://cert.br/), Ceptro.br (https://ceptro.br/), Cetic.br (https://cetic.br/), IX.br (https://ix.br/) and Ceweb.br (https://ceweb.br/), as well as projects like Internetsegura.br (https://internetsegura.br/) and the Best Practices Portal for the Internet in Brazil (https://bcp.nic.br/). It also hosts the São Paulo W3C Chapter office (https://w3c.br/).

About the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee – CGI.br    
The Brazilian Internet Steering Committee is responsible for establishing strategic guidelines related to Internet use and development in Brazil, coordinating and integrating all Internet service initiatives in the country, promoting technical quality, innovation, and dissemination of offered services. Based on the principles of multistakeholderism and transparency, CGI.br represents a democratic governance model for the Internet, praised internationally, where all sectors of society participate equitably in its decisions. One of its formulations is the 10 Principles for Internet Governance and Use (https://cgi.br/resolucoes/documento/2009/003). More information at https://cgi.br/. 

Press Contacts – NIC.br:

Weber Shandwick
PABX: (11) 3027-0200 / 3531-4950
Ana Nascimento - anascimento@webershandwick.com - (11) 98670-6579 

Communication Advisory – NIC.br
Carolina Carvalho - Communication Manager - carolcarvalho@nic.br
Soraia Marino - Communication Coordinator - soraia@nic.br 

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