The growing consensus is that in the New Economy access to
knowledge is critical for economic success. Unfortunately the
economic power of the Internet is not equally distributed.
Recent Internet usage statistics show that there are currently
429 million Internet users worldwide. This number is
actually small when considered in context. Of that 429 million,
41 percent are in North America; in fact, the United States has
more computers than the rest of the world combined!
These 429 million users actually represent only 6 percent of
the world’s entire population. The following breakdown shows
just how uneven Internet usage is across the world’s regions.
Of the online population:*
• 41 percent are in the United States and Canada
• 27 percent live in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa
• 20 percent are located in Asia
• Only 4 percent are located in South America
The importance of Internet access will further divide the
world’s population into two main groups—those having access
and those who do not.
The poorest members of society suffer based on three primary
assumptions:
• The poor cannot afford to buy the necessary equipment needed
to be connected to the Internet.
• The infrastructure of developing countries may be so poor
that a significant portion of the population is not able to connect
even if equipment is available.
• The poor may not be literate enough to make use of equipment
and connectivity even when available.
The issue of the digital divide is beginning to evolve into a
drive towards realizing the digital dividend. The digital dividend
focuses on how to use technology to improve the economic
possibilities of global society.
Some of the key principles that will enable a digital dividend
include:
• Access vs. ownership. The assumption that users must purchase
equipment to have access to the Internet must be challenged.
In the New Economy the true economic benefit
comes from access to sources of knowledge and competence,
not from ownership of the access device.
A phenomenon is developing in several developing countries
where the trend is for individuals with equipment and
access to create a business around providing access. Local
entrepreneurs in India (mostly women) are operating payper-
use telephone services that provide traveling access to
remote and other underserved areas. With little more than a
mobile phone, these entrepreneurs have made access to the
telephone possible for a large number of urban poor and people
in remote villages. Many are now adding fax and PC services
to their portfolio of services.
• Rational trade offs. While many of us would opt for direct ownership
of a PC or cellular phone, trading currency for convenience,
the poor make an equally logical trade-off by exchanging
personal convenience for low-cost, no-investment access.
This approach may also make sense for those who are able
to purchase, because technology seems to advance at a rate
that quickly makes equipment obsolete!
In an age of ever-changing PC features, individual ownership
may not be the best choice after all.
• The connectivity leapfrog. Many developing countries have
never had far-reaching telephony systems due in part to the
cost of infrastructure needed to cover sparse or difficult terrain.
Without a legacy wireline system in place, users are
unable to access even simple communications. With infrastructure
costs less than half that of a wireline system, wireless
is becoming the telephony system of choice for many
regions that lack existing copper connections to homes and
businesses. The Wireless Internet will help overcome connectivity
issues in countries that lack adequate physical
wiring.
• Multimedia literacy. It’s well known that the Internet started
as largely an English-language medium to the exclusion of
many languages, especially those that use a non-Arabic
alphabet. The tide is slowly turning and more Web sites are
publishing content in local languages.
The move towards multimedia will also help alleviate this
issue for those who are not able to read text but can communicate
verbally and visually. Many cultures have unique
dialects that are difficult and costly to translate into text but
that can be published at lower cost in a voice format.
Multimedia will enable communication to take place in ways
that accommodate the needs of the user by integrating text,
audio, and video in ways that the individual user can utilize. 217
IT Certification CCIE,CCNP,CCIP,CCNA,CCSP,Cisco Network Optimization and Security Tips
CHANGING THE ROLE OF WIRELESS OPERATORS
Wireless technology is still in its infancy and as technology
changes so does the business model of the service providers.
Rarely have major changes to the infrastructure failed to
change the possible business models.
As technologies such as WLAN and Bluetooth improve,
they will serve a portion of consumers need for connectivity.
Wireless operators have traditionally offered services only on
licensed spectrum as it protected them from undue competition.
The future will see operators offering services over both
licensed and unlicensed spectrum reflecting a shift towards the
need for seamless management of wireless access across various
networks.
Operators of the future will need to compete not only against
the few that have purchased licensed spectrum but also those
that offer services in the unlicensed band. We believe that most
enterprise and consumer users will lean towards solutions that
integrate the authentication, customer care, and billing of as
many network access technologies as needed for their particular
use. Operators with licensed spectrum will still have an edge over
those without licenses, as many users will resist the hassle of separate
subscriptions for access needed on different overlapping
networks that will often service the same laptop or mobile device. 215
changes so does the business model of the service providers.
Rarely have major changes to the infrastructure failed to
change the possible business models.
As technologies such as WLAN and Bluetooth improve,
they will serve a portion of consumers need for connectivity.
Wireless operators have traditionally offered services only on
licensed spectrum as it protected them from undue competition.
The future will see operators offering services over both
licensed and unlicensed spectrum reflecting a shift towards the
need for seamless management of wireless access across various
networks.
Operators of the future will need to compete not only against
the few that have purchased licensed spectrum but also those
that offer services in the unlicensed band. We believe that most
enterprise and consumer users will lean towards solutions that
integrate the authentication, customer care, and billing of as
many network access technologies as needed for their particular
use. Operators with licensed spectrum will still have an edge over
those without licenses, as many users will resist the hassle of separate
subscriptions for access needed on different overlapping
networks that will often service the same laptop or mobile device. 215
CHANGING THE ROLE OF WIRELESS OPERATORS
Wireless technology is still in its infancy and as technology
changes so does the business model of the service providers.
Rarely have major changes to the infrastructure failed to
change the possible business models.
As technologies such as WLAN and Bluetooth improve,
they will serve a portion of consumers need for connectivity.
Wireless operators have traditionally offered services only on
licensed spectrum as it protected them from undue competition.
The future will see operators offering services over both
licensed and unlicensed spectrum reflecting a shift towards the
need for seamless management of wireless access across various
networks.
Operators of the future will need to compete not only against
the few that have purchased licensed spectrum but also those
that offer services in the unlicensed band. We believe that most
enterprise and consumer users will lean towards solutions that
integrate the authentication, customer care, and billing of as
many network access technologies as needed for their particular
use. Operators with licensed spectrum will still have an edge over
those without licenses, as many users will resist the hassle of separate
subscriptions for access needed on different overlapping
networks that will often service the same laptop or mobile device.
changes so does the business model of the service providers.
Rarely have major changes to the infrastructure failed to
change the possible business models.
As technologies such as WLAN and Bluetooth improve,
they will serve a portion of consumers need for connectivity.
Wireless operators have traditionally offered services only on
licensed spectrum as it protected them from undue competition.
The future will see operators offering services over both
licensed and unlicensed spectrum reflecting a shift towards the
need for seamless management of wireless access across various
networks.
Operators of the future will need to compete not only against
the few that have purchased licensed spectrum but also those
that offer services in the unlicensed band. We believe that most
enterprise and consumer users will lean towards solutions that
integrate the authentication, customer care, and billing of as
many network access technologies as needed for their particular
use. Operators with licensed spectrum will still have an edge over
those without licenses, as many users will resist the hassle of separate
subscriptions for access needed on different overlapping
networks that will often service the same laptop or mobile device.
CELLULAR THREAT OR BENEFIT?
Some may see WLAN and Bluetooth access as competition for
cellular access, it’s more likely to evolve as an extension of cellular
operators offerings. Wireless operators need WLAN technology
to offload heavy localized traffic especially in indoor
environments. Recent studies support the claim that 3G operators
will need WLAN technology to handle the most demanding
users in dense areas. The fact that WLAN uses unlicensed
spectrum will not mean that operators wouldn’t need to spend
money to operate these systems as they will need the same
centralized network management, subscriber identification, security,
and roaming systems in place to manage this last portion
of the wireless transmission. WLANs could be configured to
cache frequently accessed content and reduce the data traffic
carried by the backbone of the system that would be using
licensed spectrum.
Other issues ill need to be overcome for WLAN technology
to peacefully exist with other systems that use the unlicensed
spectrum. Congestion is a real possibility as there is no limit to
the number of networks and traffic that could try to use the
frequency in a given area. Security is an issue that is growing
in importance as more and more users have a WLAN card and
can easily walk or drive within range of many corporate systems.
Many of these systems have been installed with no
change to the equipments factory settings enabling anyone that
knows the common factory settings and passwords to gain
access to corporate networks. Interference will also be a challenge
especially for companies such as Starbucks since other
devices such as Microwave ovens can generate frequencies
close enough to 2.4 GHz to disrupt the WLAN transmission
every time they heat up a muffin. 214
cellular access, it’s more likely to evolve as an extension of cellular
operators offerings. Wireless operators need WLAN technology
to offload heavy localized traffic especially in indoor
environments. Recent studies support the claim that 3G operators
will need WLAN technology to handle the most demanding
users in dense areas. The fact that WLAN uses unlicensed
spectrum will not mean that operators wouldn’t need to spend
money to operate these systems as they will need the same
centralized network management, subscriber identification, security,
and roaming systems in place to manage this last portion
of the wireless transmission. WLANs could be configured to
cache frequently accessed content and reduce the data traffic
carried by the backbone of the system that would be using
licensed spectrum.
Other issues ill need to be overcome for WLAN technology
to peacefully exist with other systems that use the unlicensed
spectrum. Congestion is a real possibility as there is no limit to
the number of networks and traffic that could try to use the
frequency in a given area. Security is an issue that is growing
in importance as more and more users have a WLAN card and
can easily walk or drive within range of many corporate systems.
Many of these systems have been installed with no
change to the equipments factory settings enabling anyone that
knows the common factory settings and passwords to gain
access to corporate networks. Interference will also be a challenge
especially for companies such as Starbucks since other
devices such as Microwave ovens can generate frequencies
close enough to 2.4 GHz to disrupt the WLAN transmission
every time they heat up a muffin. 214
CELLULAR THREAT OR BENEFIT?
Some may see WLAN and Bluetooth access as competition for
cellular access, it’s more likely to evolve as an extension of cellular
operators offerings. Wireless operators need WLAN technology
to offload heavy localized traffic especially in indoor
environments. Recent studies support the claim that 3G operators
will need WLAN technology to handle the most demanding
users in dense areas. The fact that WLAN uses unlicensed
spectrum will not mean that operators wouldn’t need to spend
money to operate these systems as they will need the same
centralized network management, subscriber identification, security,
and roaming systems in place to manage this last portion
of the wireless transmission. WLANs could be configured to
cache frequently accessed content and reduce the data traffic
carried by the backbone of the system that would be using
licensed spectrum.
Other issues ill need to be overcome for WLAN technology
to peacefully exist with other systems that use the unlicensed
spectrum. Congestion is a real possibility as there is no limit to
the number of networks and traffic that could try to use the
frequency in a given area. Security is an issue that is growing
in importance as more and more users have a WLAN card and
can easily walk or drive within range of many corporate systems.
Many of these systems have been installed with no
change to the equipments factory settings enabling anyone that
knows the common factory settings and passwords to gain
access to corporate networks. Interference will also be a challenge
especially for companies such as Starbucks since other
devices such as Microwave ovens can generate frequencies
close enough to 2.4 GHz to disrupt the WLAN transmission
every time they heat up a muffin. 214
cellular access, it’s more likely to evolve as an extension of cellular
operators offerings. Wireless operators need WLAN technology
to offload heavy localized traffic especially in indoor
environments. Recent studies support the claim that 3G operators
will need WLAN technology to handle the most demanding
users in dense areas. The fact that WLAN uses unlicensed
spectrum will not mean that operators wouldn’t need to spend
money to operate these systems as they will need the same
centralized network management, subscriber identification, security,
and roaming systems in place to manage this last portion
of the wireless transmission. WLANs could be configured to
cache frequently accessed content and reduce the data traffic
carried by the backbone of the system that would be using
licensed spectrum.
Other issues ill need to be overcome for WLAN technology
to peacefully exist with other systems that use the unlicensed
spectrum. Congestion is a real possibility as there is no limit to
the number of networks and traffic that could try to use the
frequency in a given area. Security is an issue that is growing
in importance as more and more users have a WLAN card and
can easily walk or drive within range of many corporate systems.
Many of these systems have been installed with no
change to the equipments factory settings enabling anyone that
knows the common factory settings and passwords to gain
access to corporate networks. Interference will also be a challenge
especially for companies such as Starbucks since other
devices such as Microwave ovens can generate frequencies
close enough to 2.4 GHz to disrupt the WLAN transmission
every time they heat up a muffin. 214
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