Mobile Phones Will Not Save the Poorest of the Poor

These fee-based business models are geared toward maximizing revenue, which translates to a stunning level of resource extraction from poor communities. A 2007 report by Research ICT Africa examined income expenditures of 17 African countries and found that many of the poorest individuals studied were spending more than 16 percent of their entire income on mobile services. Obviously, for these constituencies, the current costs of connectivity are far too high. Yet while the technologies for dramatically lowering the cost of connectivity already exist, politicians and regulators have been unwilling to enact bold policies that would deploy innovative solutions and promote meaningful competition. For instance, regulators in Brazil under President Lula, have been willing to take on powerful financial interests; however, across most of the developing world, policymakers remain unwilling or unable to create pro-poor regulatory environments.

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=a09b9dc257ca60b6e48e64039dcdd10c

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