The telecom world’s problems always give me déjà vu
May 22, 2006 | 12:00am
As I write this article, the first World Information Society Day (WISD) is being celebrated. Before today, it used to be World Telecommunications Day, intended to commemorate the creation of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) close to a century and a half ago.
As I read all the materials in the various supplements in the newspaper dailies on it, I get an unmistakable feeling of deja vu, for in a speech before the Makati Business Club (MBC) when I was still a government functionary less than a decade ago, I remember having analyzed essentially identical problems and issues then. In spite of "cyberspace," an everyday term used commonly today, the prescribed reforms have not changed.
The need for a Philippine Information Infrastructure (PII) remains critical. The need for connectivity to and interconnectivity within what is called the "network of networks," the Global Information Infrastructure (GII) remains absolutely necessary. The huge problem that is the Digital Divide still stares every world citizen in the face… the struggle of the "have-nots" and the complacency of the "haves" are as strong as ever, in spite of the fact that the new technologies have provided greater connectivity. For the costs remain high and the economies of scale have not yet provided the relief needed. Beyond these are the problems and issues, which, in spite of the technology marathon, remain fundamentally the same today. That’s deja vu.
I had a telephone conversation recently with Secretary General Yoshio Utsumi, the current head of the ITU, now on his second term. The Philippines supported Mr. Utsumi in two successive elections for the ITU Secretary Generalship. He is ending his second term soon. Yoshio had talked to me about the need for the GII and the huge problem of cybersecurity.
For that matter, the promotion of cybersecurity has been made the theme for the WISD. I had highlighted in past articles this problem of cybersecurity and had underscored it as a critical problem that has to be addressed not only by the ITU, but more critically by its member jurisdictions. I feel good that the pronounced theme announced by the ITU today is the promotion of global cybersecurity.
There was therefore every reason for that feeling of deja vu. I remember having started my speech before the MBC by telling them about the caption of the speech of then-president of PETEF (Philippine Electronic and Telecommunications Federation) Fortune Perlas, delivered at a PETEF conference, which was "Fission, fusion or confusion?" as regards the telecom environment existing then.
Fortune labeled the telecom environment then as in a state of "confusion." I did so in my MBC speech, and am doing so right now. Where technology moves faster than regulation, confusion is bound to exist. It was the case then, and it’s the case now.
Not that the ITU and the domestic regulatory bodies of the world have been incompetent or lazy, it’s just that the speed and the heights of human genius and imagination have surpassed the skill and speed of the world regulator and the regulators of the world. Companies all over the world work to accelerate and exploit the new technologies for numerous applications, and participate in the transformation of these technologies into new commercial applications.
The number and diversity of these applications are as broad and novel as imagination, inventiveness and entrepreneurial genius can create. These applications we can see now have profoundly affected the lives of billions of people in developed and developing societies everywhere. And, of course, I don’t think this will change. For as long as global capitalism encourages it, and for as long as this technology marathon outpaces the regulatory dimension, confusion will be our state in the world and at home.
In fact, I remember having said that "we live in revolutionary times, a revolution of global telecommunications and a revolution of global capitalism." Like most revolutions, it is subject to fits and starts, advances and crises. I called it in my MBC speech a "time of crisis" and I am calling it so today.
Stressing the need for a new global architecture which indeed is such an awesome phrase for a developing country like the Philippines, I can see that same critical need today. As we all know, digitalization, which happened to the telecom world, opened the path to the new technology-driven tools and transformed all existing technologies.
A great deal of this innovation has centered on packaging data, on accessing remote databases, on information delivery and management. The communications landscape is being dominated by global information networks serving different kinds of applications that are getting more and more exciting, if not more complex. We are seeing combinations of networks with increasing degrees of interoperability. Much of this new communications infrastructure could be satellite-based, in areas where the roll-out of cable lines are either impossible or expensive.
These new technologies and, in turn, new applications, have liberated a huge reservoir of untapped, untutored human capital. This new wealth of energy and initiative has driven unprecedented productivity and simultaneously spurred new business opportunities.
The chemistry of these technologies and global capitalism has been extraordinary. The capitalism of the 21st century is creating new levels of wealth and new dimensions of shareholder value that rival any period of economic expansion and human progress in telecom history.
In a matter of less than a decade, we are now talking about 3G telephony. In fact, one Philippine carrier talked about 3.5G… there is no such thing as 3.5G. As I said in a previous article, hardly has the Philippines commenced with 3G when 4G is now hitting the global environment. The firmament of wireless applications is vast indeed.
The question to ask now in 2006 is not the vague and abstract question "What will society look like in 2010?" The more concrete and sensible question is: "What kind of killer applications will mobile devices offer in 2010?" Globalization in the new millennium has ushered in a great number of regulatory issues for telecommunications and information technology leaders the world over to address.
The world’s communications networks have become one single network where technologies and geographical boundaries are intended to dissolve. But it is still deja vu as far as the basic problems are concerned. Universal access still has to be addressed. Connectivity to that main ICT highway, and interconnectivity within, remain the fundamental problems to address.
Dr. Pekka Tarjanne, former Secretary General of the ITU, said towards the end of his second term that the right of every world citizen to "access" is a fundamental right. He told us on one occasion the story of a mother nursing a sick child in a small, obscure village in Africa, without any access and hence, no access to medical help of any sort. The tragic ending of that story should really not be allowed in a global community rejoicing in abundance over the new technologies.
It is sad when technology outpaces regulation, but it is sadder still – in fact, tragic – when, in spite of technology, and in spite of the extraordinary chemistry of the new technologies and global capitalism which has created unprecedented levels of wealth, a sick baby in a remote village has to die because of lack of access.
(To be continued)
Thanks for your e-mails sent to jtl@pldtdsl.net
As I read all the materials in the various supplements in the newspaper dailies on it, I get an unmistakable feeling of deja vu, for in a speech before the Makati Business Club (MBC) when I was still a government functionary less than a decade ago, I remember having analyzed essentially identical problems and issues then. In spite of "cyberspace," an everyday term used commonly today, the prescribed reforms have not changed.
The need for a Philippine Information Infrastructure (PII) remains critical. The need for connectivity to and interconnectivity within what is called the "network of networks," the Global Information Infrastructure (GII) remains absolutely necessary. The huge problem that is the Digital Divide still stares every world citizen in the face… the struggle of the "have-nots" and the complacency of the "haves" are as strong as ever, in spite of the fact that the new technologies have provided greater connectivity. For the costs remain high and the economies of scale have not yet provided the relief needed. Beyond these are the problems and issues, which, in spite of the technology marathon, remain fundamentally the same today. That’s deja vu.
I had a telephone conversation recently with Secretary General Yoshio Utsumi, the current head of the ITU, now on his second term. The Philippines supported Mr. Utsumi in two successive elections for the ITU Secretary Generalship. He is ending his second term soon. Yoshio had talked to me about the need for the GII and the huge problem of cybersecurity.
For that matter, the promotion of cybersecurity has been made the theme for the WISD. I had highlighted in past articles this problem of cybersecurity and had underscored it as a critical problem that has to be addressed not only by the ITU, but more critically by its member jurisdictions. I feel good that the pronounced theme announced by the ITU today is the promotion of global cybersecurity.
There was therefore every reason for that feeling of deja vu. I remember having started my speech before the MBC by telling them about the caption of the speech of then-president of PETEF (Philippine Electronic and Telecommunications Federation) Fortune Perlas, delivered at a PETEF conference, which was "Fission, fusion or confusion?" as regards the telecom environment existing then.
Fortune labeled the telecom environment then as in a state of "confusion." I did so in my MBC speech, and am doing so right now. Where technology moves faster than regulation, confusion is bound to exist. It was the case then, and it’s the case now.
Not that the ITU and the domestic regulatory bodies of the world have been incompetent or lazy, it’s just that the speed and the heights of human genius and imagination have surpassed the skill and speed of the world regulator and the regulators of the world. Companies all over the world work to accelerate and exploit the new technologies for numerous applications, and participate in the transformation of these technologies into new commercial applications.
The number and diversity of these applications are as broad and novel as imagination, inventiveness and entrepreneurial genius can create. These applications we can see now have profoundly affected the lives of billions of people in developed and developing societies everywhere. And, of course, I don’t think this will change. For as long as global capitalism encourages it, and for as long as this technology marathon outpaces the regulatory dimension, confusion will be our state in the world and at home.
In fact, I remember having said that "we live in revolutionary times, a revolution of global telecommunications and a revolution of global capitalism." Like most revolutions, it is subject to fits and starts, advances and crises. I called it in my MBC speech a "time of crisis" and I am calling it so today.
Stressing the need for a new global architecture which indeed is such an awesome phrase for a developing country like the Philippines, I can see that same critical need today. As we all know, digitalization, which happened to the telecom world, opened the path to the new technology-driven tools and transformed all existing technologies.
A great deal of this innovation has centered on packaging data, on accessing remote databases, on information delivery and management. The communications landscape is being dominated by global information networks serving different kinds of applications that are getting more and more exciting, if not more complex. We are seeing combinations of networks with increasing degrees of interoperability. Much of this new communications infrastructure could be satellite-based, in areas where the roll-out of cable lines are either impossible or expensive.
These new technologies and, in turn, new applications, have liberated a huge reservoir of untapped, untutored human capital. This new wealth of energy and initiative has driven unprecedented productivity and simultaneously spurred new business opportunities.
The chemistry of these technologies and global capitalism has been extraordinary. The capitalism of the 21st century is creating new levels of wealth and new dimensions of shareholder value that rival any period of economic expansion and human progress in telecom history.
In a matter of less than a decade, we are now talking about 3G telephony. In fact, one Philippine carrier talked about 3.5G… there is no such thing as 3.5G. As I said in a previous article, hardly has the Philippines commenced with 3G when 4G is now hitting the global environment. The firmament of wireless applications is vast indeed.
The question to ask now in 2006 is not the vague and abstract question "What will society look like in 2010?" The more concrete and sensible question is: "What kind of killer applications will mobile devices offer in 2010?" Globalization in the new millennium has ushered in a great number of regulatory issues for telecommunications and information technology leaders the world over to address.
The world’s communications networks have become one single network where technologies and geographical boundaries are intended to dissolve. But it is still deja vu as far as the basic problems are concerned. Universal access still has to be addressed. Connectivity to that main ICT highway, and interconnectivity within, remain the fundamental problems to address.
Dr. Pekka Tarjanne, former Secretary General of the ITU, said towards the end of his second term that the right of every world citizen to "access" is a fundamental right. He told us on one occasion the story of a mother nursing a sick child in a small, obscure village in Africa, without any access and hence, no access to medical help of any sort. The tragic ending of that story should really not be allowed in a global community rejoicing in abundance over the new technologies.
It is sad when technology outpaces regulation, but it is sadder still – in fact, tragic – when, in spite of technology, and in spite of the extraordinary chemistry of the new technologies and global capitalism which has created unprecedented levels of wealth, a sick baby in a remote village has to die because of lack of access.
(To be continued)
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