Krishna Mohan Durbha
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2. Transcending Digital Barriers In a vast country like India, the digital divide is both a result of socio-economic and language barriers. Huge populations with below secondary level education and lacking English knowledge automatically deter increase in Internet usage. The Indian experience in Mobile Devices penetration is summarized here in highlighting barriers to adoption and the possible strategies for overcoming them. 2.1 Seeding Devices in the market There can be no ICT strategy without the availability of devices and networks. The mobile can today, combine computing power of the PC, visual appeal of the TV and convenience of portability. But the challenge remains the cost of mobile phone itself especially when trying to provide access to more than just voice services. As access to a mobile phone becomes an entry barrier, the question is : Who is to bear the subsidies that are necessary to increase penetration of ICT devices? 2.2 Lack of prior “PC like User-Experience” & “Techno-Phobia” When no immediate perceivable benefits are seen, there is inherent inertia towards adopting new technologies. Without experiencing, tasting and testing people cannot be expected to embrace new technology. Marketers expect communities to yield quick Return On Investments (ROI) and may not choose to put in the resources necessary for them to accept new technology. When large telecom operators launched mobile phone services in Europe, they encouraged usage by providing mobile phones practically for free. In the developing world, few companies have invested so much in facilitating acceptance of a technology. The challenges are far more in economies whose IT industry is still in its fledgling stage.

2.3: Language & relevant Content
Marketers of ICT services need to go beyond pure entertainment where they derive their revenues to building virtual communities that share knowledge, trade and interact. Special emphasis needs to be placed on women and youth who are likely to benefit the most.

An interesting pattern is emerging in countries like India where multiple languages pose a serious barrier to m-literacy. Here Interactive Voice and Speech Recognition technologies (Voice Portals) let the user interact with voice commands with a potential to facilitate quick adoption. However, currently the services using this technology have still a long way to go as far as providing maximum “value for money”.

2.4 Value For Money
In India Price or “Value for Money” is the most significant factor for adoption of new technology.

• Successful companies in India have found that “Sachet Pricing” is inevitable where in even the biggest brands sell huge quantities of say shampoo in small, low price-per-unit packets rather than in the standard unaffordable bottle units.
• “Free Snacking” i.e. touch, feel and experiencing of the value is critical to adoption.

3. Impact of Mobile Data adoption 3.1 m-Expression With Mobile Phones ICT technologies have the prospect of shaping socio-political future within communities. Mobile phones particularly are increasingly being used as the mode of expression of political, ideological and social rights. In India, users experienced for the first time the broadcast of a political campaign in 2005 by a political party over mobile phones on the eve of elections. The way mobile phone was instrumental in the over throw of the Estrada government in Philippines has become part of telecom folklore. Similarly, the power of this medium for reacting to human disasters like the 2005 Mumbai deluge or the 2004 Tsunami is also well known. In a way the mobile phones are destroying traditional hierarchies and enhancing direct access to politicians and institutions alike. 3.2 m-Culture With Mobile Phones Religion also seems to be adapting to the mobile phone. Both prayers and rituals integral to everyday life are being performed using the device. SMS prayers or requests to light candles on occasions of religious import are common place. In the West, even the Catholic Church has turned to the medium to send “thoughts for the day” from the Pope via SMS. This interplay between technology and culture is also manifesting itself into hardware design. A Korean company has developed a mobile phone that helps users in the Middle East to perform “salat” in the direction of Mecca.

3.2 m-Powering With Mobile Phones
Women are quickly becoming big users of mobile phones, increasingly relying on their phones to achieve a balance between careers and homes. They are getting a voice through the medium besides being able to reach out beyond the family. In some countries, mobile phone-based ovulation monitors give women greater control over their fertility.

The youth, the quickest adopters of mobile phones also benefit from the instant connectedness the mobile service provides. Their social networks are largely built, sustained and enhanced through mobile phones. Owning a mobile phone is also becoming an integral part of growing independent and self-reliant. Servicing their needs are special applications that provide access to exam transcripts or information on higher education. In some countries special youth help lines help prevent teenage suicides. But the under-side has been that the youth are also among the quickest to abuse the freedom afforded by mobile phones. However, the positives far outweigh the negatives. 3.3 m-Commerce and m-Governance With Mobile Phones Even without addressing Mobile Commerce, mobile phones have facilitated the prospering of small businesses (from street-side vendors to small-time service providers), granting them access to many more customers. In parts of Asia and Africa, developments are underway to transform the mobile phone into an electronic wallet and identification system, opening up a wider spectrum of convenient commercial services to users.

Already the mobile space is seeing innovations like a farmer who uses his phone to start irrigation pumps (India) or the call-in radio station (Sri Lanka). Furthermore, expanding possibilities for telemedicine, telecommuting, micro-finance, commodity trading and rural management, point to mobile phones being a part of the future of ICT. The way forward in translating these possibilities into prosperity is by making mobile phones affordable and applications as relevant to commerce as possible.