ICT Infrastructure in Emerging Asia: Policy and Regulatory Roadblocks

This volume brings together scholars, practitioners, regulators and policy makers to address the problem of expanding information and communication technology (ICT) connectivity in emerging Asia. It centrally engages the widespread claim that technology by itself-independent of policy and regulatory reform-can improve access to ICTs. In doing so, it shows that complex workarounds are possible, but that they are significantly less effective than the appropriate policy and regulatory reforms. The key features of the volume are: " It examines how theoretically optimal concepts are implemented in the hard terrain of emerging Asia. " It considers the problem of expanding connectivity from various perspectives: that of the user, the operator, the policy maker, the regulator, and civil society. " It reports the findings of a cutting-edge 3,000+ sample demand-side survey of telecom use at the 'bottom of the pyramid' in India and Sri Lanka. " It gleans lessons from five Asian countries-Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Nepal and Sri Lanka-based on their experiences with developing telecom connectivity. " It sheds light on a range of situations and technologies, like telephone use under ceasefire in Sri Lanka, wi-fi in Indonesia, and universal service obligation in India. " This well-structured volume will be of great value to those who wish to implement policy and regulatory reforms and improve ongoing reforms.

Table of Contents:
Introduction: What is… and What Could Have Been… I: DEMAND AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PYRAMID What do Users at the Bottom of the Pyramid Want? - Ayesha Zainudeen Strategies on a Shoestring - Ayesha Zainudeen and Tahani Iqbal I Just Called to Say: Teleuse Under a Ceasefire - Rohan Samarajiva, Mariam Hameed and Ayesha Zainudeen II: ACCESS, AGAINST ALL ODDS Geektivism Making a Business Out of a Village Phone - Malathy Knight-John Wi-Fi: The Network Fix - Divakar Goswami III: REGULATION: TO STIFLE OR ENABLE? One Backbone, or Two? - Harsha Vardhana Singh and Rohan Samarajiva The Dumbing-down of Smart Subsidies - Harsha De Silva Universal Service Obligations: To Incumbents - Payal Malik Access Deficit Tax? - Harsha De Silva IV: WHAT COULD BE… High AMPU from Low - Arpu Mahinda B Herath Regulating for the Next Billion - Rajendra Singh and Siddhartha Raja … Through the Markets - Visoot Phongsathorn Appendices Index

Review :
This is an important book…. By asking different questions and using fresh data from unexpected sources, this book contributes to debates on policy-making, the role of institutions, and the interplay between technological advances and the policy context within which they work. The book is the outcome of the research done on telecommunications in India. It rests on an assumption that connectivity is the opportunity to engage in electronically mediated communication and is good. The book is an organised material on the researches done and put together. At a time when GSM operators, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) are at an imbroglio over spectrum allocation, Prof Rohan Samarajiva’s book, ICT Infrastructure in Emerging Asia, makes for a timely read.