Title: Connect to the bottom of the pyramid. South Asian and African countries share notes on mobile services for socio-economic development

Author: M. Somasekhar
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Date (published): 10/05/2010
Date (accessed): 10/05/2010
Type of information: aricle
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
How much time do you think it takes a poor person in one of the least developed places in any South Asian country to reach a telephone — either fixed or mobile?

The answer is about five minutes. This facilitates chat and basic communication for people who fall under the category of bottom of the pyramid (BoP). At the other end of the spectrum are people who have access to broadband services, high-speed Internet connectivity and e-commerce on their mobile phone.

This is a typical scenario in many South Asian and African countries where telecom and the Internet promise to usher in dramatic changes in the quality of life of the people. The challenge is to come up with suitable applications to harness this power to help the poor people.

So, in addition to talking, can such technology help them transfer money, pay utility bills, get information on health/ farming, or book tickets and so on?

via http://lirneasia.net/