A Digitally
Inclusive
South Africa
Steve Song
Telecommunications
Fellow
Shuttleworth Foundation
www.shuttleworthfoundation.org

Why digital
inclusion?
A tide that raises all ships
the power to transcend

space and time
a general purpose enabler

the immediacy of ideas

the location of innovation

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Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hint-of-plum/

Telecom infrastructure is
the Cardiovascular System
of the
Knowledge Economy
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YouTube vs. Television
In the 60 years since the 3
largest U.S. networks began
broadcasting, one can imagine
about 1.5 million hours of
programming.
3 networks x 60 years x 365 days x 24 hours
1.5 million hours of programming
=
YouTube produces this
much content in six months.
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Courtesy Michael Wesch, An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube

YouTube
9232 hours/day
●
385 always on
●
channels
200,000 3-
●
minute videos
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Courtesy Michael Wesch, An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube

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Quake Catcher Network
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But in Africa...
In relative terms SA

is falling behind
Costs still higher

than neighbouring
countries
There is a need for

a shared vision
among industry,
government, and
consumers
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Global Trends 2008
High-Quality Broadband Essential to Growth of the World’s Knowledge
Economies – Oxford Said Business School – Press Release Sept 2008
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Under-
sea
Cables
in
2010?
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Television
Cdn 105 Mhz
Spectrum Auction
White
Open Spaces
Alliance
Standards
for Spectrum 700Mhz Mobile
Auctions Spectrum
Spectrum WiMax WiFi
Commons
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The Democratisation of
Telecom Infrastructure
Telephone
= “connect out”
Infrastructure
=
Internet “connect in”
Infrastructure
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ICTs are steadily declining in
cost
inexpensive
off-the-shelf
broadband
technology
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Open Source Software
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Telco 2.0
Web2.0 is changing how we understand
media, participation, publishing, copyright,
and that is just the beginning.
What might happen if telecommunication
infrastructure became cheap enough and
simple enough that anyone could set up a
telco?
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Photo Credits – CC
Mosquito
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gyuvallos/71410563/sizes/o/
Cardiovascular System
http://www.flickr.com/photos/patrlynch/
Hand with phone
http://www.flickr.com/photos/whiteafrican/2736565604/sizes/l/
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Thanks!
Steve Song
mail: steve.song@shuttleworthfoundation.org
skype: steve_l_song
blog: http://manypossibilities.net
twitter: stevesong
del.icio.us: ssong
www.shuttleworthfoundation.org