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r Tuesday's reading from The Economist discussed how cellular devices are facilitating the lives of third world citizens. Access to cell phones allows these citizens to voice their opinions on human rights, learn more about political candidates, gain vital information for profitable business ventures, and provide their families with financial capital through cellular banking. The reading also discussed how micro-financing has played a large part in the cellular boom and that small scale businesses have rapidly expanded due to increased access to cell phones. One of the most alarming statistics for this article was that 10 phone calls for every one-hundred people in developing nations adds an additional .8 percent GDP per citizen. The article also highlighted the success of Chinese and Indian telecommunication models through the newly applied strategies of tower sharing, off-shoring, and dynamic transferring. The article concluded with a forecast predicting that the future of cell phone technology in developing nations lies in internet accessibly: an area that would further alleviate citizens from their financial shortcomings.
I'm amazed to find out all the possible uses of the cell phone and its contribution to economic growth. Instead of just simple devices we use for calling and texting, they have so many political and social uses. The part about cell phones helping individuals start a business was particularly interesting because it reminded me of a family in my hometown China who used to sell phone calls to everyone long time ago because they were the only ones with a phone. They were very successful, and used the profits to expand their store.
ReplyDeleteAs our reading concluded it discussed how internet connectivity shared the same potential growth as cell phones experienced in developing nations. One point I thought the article did not address was that although many people do not own laptops, they are still indirectly connected to the internet through text message services. Many farmers are receiving text messages with updates such as incoming weather to help them produce more efficiently. I believe that in coming years many poor people will begin to rely more on text message as an indirect route to the internet, usually paying a fee for the service. Impoverished people can who cannot afford internet can still benefit from its knowledge by using their cell phones.
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