WDR e-Brief, Vol. 4, # 2
Friday, 22 April 2005
In this e-Brief
Q&A
The real digital diversity
New research topics
Telecom Demand: Measures for Improving Affordability Project
ICTs and Disaster Warning
Regulatory Practices on Information Provision and Communication with
Stakeholders
Towards and African E-index: Understanding supply and demand by measuring
ICT access and usage
New Models of Network Ownership and Management
New research
Benchmark Indicators for Latin American and Caribbean National Regulatory
Authority Websites
National Early Warning System: Sri Lanka
WDR/LIRNE.NET news
TRAI VOIP and regulation workshop
Book on radio and ICTs translated into Spanish
8th annual Economics of Infrastructures international conference at Delft
University of Technology
News from the networks
infoDev's new website
DIRSI/REDIS network news (research progress and meeting planned prior to
WSIS regional meeting in Rio in June)
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Q&A: The real digital diversity
Q&A is a WDR's regular feature in which WDR experts answer your questions
related to the current research theme, WDR activities, or telecom regulation
in general.
The Economist on March 10th published an article claiming that the mobile
phone alone could bridge the digital divide. Under the title "The Real
Digital Divide", it asserts that investing in internet access is unnecessary
since telephony is sufficient to satisfy the development needs of poor
communities, and that universal access can and will be secured through
further liberalisation and private investment.
In our regular question and answer column, WDR guest commentator Seán Ó
Siochrú responded to the article, explaining why it is still important to
diversify participation for network development.
Question: If the answer really as simple as the Economist claims, then why
does WDR maintain its emphasis on diversifying participation for network
development?
Answer: The Economist article sets off by correctly noting that the digital
divide is merely a symptom of deeper, more important divides such as income,
development and literacy. And mobile phone use has indeed grown
spectacularly in many poor countries, and provides significant social and
development benefits. However, the argument soon exposes a serious
shortcoming, that of generalisation. Time and again it has been shown that
generalising about solutions is a mistake - there is no one- size-fits-all -
and this applies equally to technologies (GSM mobile), to applications
(telephony), and to regulatory approaches (liberalisation and competition).
Read Seán Ó Siochrú's full response at:
http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/346/40/
Email your questions to [log in to unmask] .
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New WDR Research Projects
The recently completed research on the WDR theme, Stimulating Investment in
Network Development: Roles for Regulators (now in publication) demonstrated
that network development requires a much broader focus if anything
resembling universal access in an internet environment is to be achieved.
Participation by all interested parties will not just have to be
accommodated, but also facilitated and supported by policymakers and
regulators. This has led us to select the WDR theme for dialogue and
research for the third cycle, which is now beginning, as Diversifying
Participation in Network Development. Telecom regulators and policymakers
will need to play an important role in this process. It requires much more
than licensing a few competitors to incumbent operators. Rather it involves
facilitating participation from both the public and private sectors at
local, regional, national and international levels, in extending networks,
supplying services, organizing services demand, and applying services in
many different ways.
A variety of studies are being undertaken by the WDR participating research
centres on this theme over the next nine months. Summaries of these study
plans will be posted on the WDR website and announced in e-Briefs over the
next few months. They in turn will provide reference points for periodic
dialogue issues that will be raised for general discussion. Comments on the
WDR research studies are invited, as are contributions of additional
research on the dialogue theme from those outside the WDR Centre network.
In this e-Brief and on the website we introduce five of the new studies now
underway. See the abstracts below or visit the WDR third cycle research page
at: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/category/4/67/31/
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Telecom Demand: Measures for Improving Affordability Project
Lead centre: Media & Communications, LSE - Contacts: Robin Mansell & Claire
Milne
Understanding affordability is key to understanding telecom demand which, in
turn, is central to sound business cases for investment and the achievement
of network development. This project is the first stage in producing a
toolkit for improving telecom affordability alongside improvements in
accessibility. The project is in part a scoping study, and will produce
plans for completing the toolkit as well as some initial elements of the
toolkit.
More information at: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/363/31/
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ICTs and Disaster Warning
Lead centre: LIRNEasia - Contacts: Rohan Samarajiva & Ayesha Zainudeen,
Hazards arise in the physical world. The hazard, if it is witnessed by human
beings is warning in itself; the advice that is given to the citizens of
Hawaii about local tsunamis that may be created by proximate earthquakes
exemplifies this: "your feet are your signal; if you feel an earthquake,
head for high ground." If the hazard goes unnoticed by humans and the
detection devices employed by humans, like an underwater landslide for
instance, the hazard could not only become a disaster, but it would go
undetected by the human world. The aim of disaster warning is to prevent a
hazard from becoming a disaster. In order to accomplish this, accurate and
credible warning must be communicated to the vulnerable population as
rapidly as possible, as far in advance of the physical effects as possible.
That is, the physical occurrence must be represented in the symbolic world
as soon as possible.
More information at: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/362/31/
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Regulatory Practices around Information Provision and Communication with
Stakeholders
Lead Centre: Comunica - Contact: Amy Mahan
Regulatory institutions, working at arm's length from government, are
charged with effectively balancing the demands of different stakeholders.
Especially in a post-privatisation context, the telecom regulatory
environment is a constantly changing and evolving terrain. Institutional
weakness can result in regulatory capture (by the private sector), an
inordinate focus on short-term gains (for the government), or simply an
uncoordinated underdevelopment of the sector - at the cost of addressing
consumer interests and building a robust infrastructure. Regulatory
information and communication practices are thus key to assessing the
progress and future of privatisation efforts at a national level.
More information at: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/364/31/
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Towards an African E-Index: Understanding supply and demand by measuring ICT
access and usage
Lead centre: LINK Centre, University of the Witwatersrand - Contact: Alison
Gillwald
Every society needs a guiding vision, policy certainty and transparent
regulation to promote the potential of ICTs for economic growth and poverty
alleviation, global competitiveness and growing employment opportunities and
skills provision. Research is critical to establishing the needs of
countries and groups within them, and to conceptualising approaches that are
likely to be effective in resolving country-specific problems. Unlike other
parts of the world committed to participatory policy formulation processes,
there are few, and in most countries no, independent agencies contributing
to these processes in the broader public interest on the basis of rigorous
applied research. African research based on a sound body of data,
information and analysis is urgently needed to assess the issues and inform
African decision- making in relation to policies, regulations and
investment.
More information at: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/366/31/
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New Models of Network Ownership and Management: The role of local
communities
Lead centre: Comunica - Contact: Bruce Girard
This research topic will examine alternative models of network ownership and
management, with a particular focus on local ownership of networks in rural
communities. It will look at a variety of ownership and control models,
including cooperatives, SMEs, municipal government ownership, public-private
partnerships and scenarios in which different entities own different parts
of the network (i.e. private backbone and cooperative last mile). It will
also look at changing technologies that are making local ownership and
management possible (especially wireless) and at policy and regulatory best
(and worst) practices.
More information at: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/365/31/
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New research
WDR partners have released two new research papers.
National Early Warning System: Sri Lanka
National Early Warning System: Sri Lanka (NEWS: SL) is a participatory
concept paper for the design of an effective all-hazard public warning
system. The objective of the paper is to provide recommendations for the
parameters and specifications of a national early warning system appropriate
for Sri Lanka, with adequate regional and global linkages capable of
conveying warning messages of any scale or type in the event of an impending
hazard.
More information at: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/322/31/
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Benchmark Indicators for Latin American and Caribbean National Regulatory
Authority Websites
Estándares de comparación para los sitios web de los entes reguladores
nacionales de América Latina y el Caribe
The websites of national telecommunications regulatory authorities can be
important vehicles for information dissemination, communication and
transparency. Through them citizens and consumer organisations can get
information about their rights and how to exercise them, the telecom
industry can access information about standards, policies and procedures,
and regulatory agencies can signal their willingness to be accountable,
examined, available and reported upon. A well designed and complete website
can promote effective and efficient citizen and industry participation.
A new study by WDR researcher Amy Mahan compares the websites of eighteen
national regulatory authorities from Latin America and the Caribbean and
concludes that the there are large variations between countries in terms of
quality of the information and accessibility.
The study is available in English and Spanish
More information in English at:
http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/354/31/
Más información en español:
http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/372/31/
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WDR/LIRNE.NET news
VOIP and Regulation Workshop
The Telecom Regulation Authority of India (TRAI) and infoDev held a one-day
workshop on Convergence, VOIP and Regulation in Delhi, 10 March. LIRNE.NET
provided international experts William Melody, Ewan Sutherland, and Reza
Tadayoni who joined TRAI officials with presentations and discussant
comments before a lively group of 50 participants from TRAI, the Ministry
and the sector.
More information and workshop presentations at:
http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/332/40/
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Radio & ICT book translated into Spanish
Secreto a Voces is the Spanish title of a book about radio and new ICTs
edited by WDR associate Bruce Girard. Originally released in English as The
One to Watch, the book discusses how radio stations in developing countries
are making use of the internet to research, to establish networks, and to
keep communities together despite the distances imposed by migration. It
includes case studies from Africa, Asia and Latin America.
For information on ordering the Spanish version, or to download it in PDF
format, visit http://comunica.org/secreto/ . The English version is
available at http://comunica.org/1-2-watch/
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Governance of infrastructures revisited
The 8th Annual International Conference on the Economics of Infrastructures
will take place at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, May
26-27 2005. Speakers from academia, business and government will address
issues of investments, finance and safeguarding public interest in relation
to the domains of telecom, energy and water. Workshops topics include a
Research Program related to WiFi, Changing Power Systems, and Drinking Water
Supply. For full program details and registration visit the conference
website at:
http://www2.ei.tbm.tudelft.nl/EI8Conference/8th_Annual_Conference_Homepage.h
tm
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News from the Networks
infoDev gets new look
The Information for Development Program (infoDev) has unveiled a new website
to accompany its new strategy. Created in 1995 infoDev has until recently
been primarily a grant facility for pilot projects using ICT to combat
poverty and promote development. Its new strategy is designed to strengthen
the linkages between pilot projects, evidence, analysis and action in
harnessing ICTs for development. The principal focus of infoDev's activities
in 2004-2005 is on how ICTs can substantially advance progress toward the
Millennium Development Goals. infoDev has launched an intensive program of
support for research, analysis, and evaluation, impact monitoring, and
toolkit development. As part of its work under the theme "Enabling Access
for All", infoDev is a major supporter of the World Dialogue on Regulation.
Visit the new website at www.infodev.org
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DIRSI/REDIS researching pro-poor strategies in Latin America
The telecommunications regulatory research group established at a meeting in
Montevideo last November has a name - REDIS in English (Regional Dialogue on
the Information Society) and DIRSI in Spanish (Diálogo Regional sobre
Sociedad de la Información). It has established a number of research
priorities and will meet prior to the Latin American regional WSIS
conference in Rio de Janeiro in June. At the meeting, to be held June 6 and
7, the researchers will discuss progress on four research topics.
More information: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/view/373/40/
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Questions and support
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Subscribing and Unsubscribing
The WDR e-Brief is a monthly bulletin from the World Dialogue on Regulation
for Network Economies - http://www.regulateonline.org . Subscribe from the
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Bruce Girard edits the e-Brief.
Archives: http://www.regulateonline.org/content/category/7/108/40/
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The purpose of the World Dialogue on Regulation is to critically examine
ideas and evidence. Unless otherwise indicated, the views expressed in
content appearing on the WDR website, the Online Dialogue and the WDR
e-Brief are the personal views of the individuals submitting them. Content
does not necessarily reflect the views of LIRNE.NET, infoDev, the World
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