Home Global-ICTGlobal-ICT 2009 Broadband – Society’s new highway

Broadband – Society’s new highway

by david.nunes
Carl-Henric SvanbergIssue:Global-ICT 2009
Article no.:7
Topic:Broadband – Society’s new highway
Author:Carl-Henric Svanberg
Title:President and CEO
Organisation:Ericsson
PDF size:168KB

About author

Carl-Henric Svanberg is President and CEO of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson. He had served previously as President and CEO of the Assa Abloy Group. Earlier, Mr Svanberg worked for the security company Securitas as First Executive Vice President for the Securitas Group, with responsibility for alarm solutions and locks. Mr. Svanberg also held various foreign assignments within project exports for Asea Brown Boveri (ABB). Carl-Henric Svanberg earned a Master of Science degree from the Linköping Institute of Technology, Sweden, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Uppsala University, Sweden. Mr Svanberg also holds honorary doctorates from Luleå University of Technology, Sweden and Linköping University of Technology, Sweden.

Article abstract

Broadband can help develop the economy, provide previously underserved areas with access to the global economy, create jobs and boost productivity. Mobility is the key; in five years, about 80 per cent of global broadband traffic will be mobile. ICT can also make a huge difference in fighting climate change. The ICT sector can contribute to a 15-20 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions by developing intelligent methods for producing and distributing energy, maintaining buildings, travelling, socializing and so on.

Full Article

The Internet is the most significant communications technology since telephony. With more than one billion subscribers it has had an impact on almost every aspect of our lives – how we work, how we spend our leisure time, how we learn and how we access public services. Now with broadband going mobile, the uptake is exponential. As demand surges for services such as multimedia downloads, online TV and gaming, broadband has quickly surpassed all other forms of network traffic to become the fastest-growing telecom service in history. Today, its uptake is limited only by supply. Mobile broadband evolution is fundamentally changing the need for capacity and coverage as more and more devices are connected. We can now expect the number of fixed and mobile broadband subscriptions to increase by a factor of seven by 2014 – to almost 3.5 billion worldwide. The socioeconomic impact In many countries the expansion of telecommunications is at the top of the political agenda. In the US, broadband expansion has been included in the recent stimulus package and in China the biggest telecommunications expansion projects the world has ever seen are underway. Governments around the world see that telecommunications and broadband can help develop the economy in both urban and rural areas, and provide previously underserved areas with access to the global economy. Research shows that increasing broadband penetration can generate business and job opportunities, boost productivity in the private and public sectors, and facilitate a sustainable society. Some of the most powerful leaders in the world have defined access to the Internet as a key driver of economic growth and I always quote Jeffrey Sachs, experienced economist and special advisor to the UN Secretary-General, who refers to the mobile phone as the single most important tool in fighting poverty. In general, we can see that enabling a digital society has become a key priority for governments and international bodies, as the benefits of access to broadband services in social and economic terms are well established. Still, despite the more than 600 million broadband subscriptions worldwide, the vast majority of the world’s population does not have access to broadband. Only a handful of countries have exceeded 60 per cent broadband penetration. Even in highly developed telecom regions like Europe and the US, typically less than half of all households have broadband, and most of these are in urban areas – rural areas have been left behind. Society’s new highway So how can broadband be brought to a wider public, bridging the digital divide between rural and urban areas, and made affordable for everyone? Mobility is the key here as ICT industry estimates show that mobile broadband enabled devices – not only phones – will constitute about 80 per cent of global mobile traffic in five years. But every single person should have access to this revolution; and this should be a priority for the industry and for governments, who must join forces to achieve this goal in a sustainable way. Soon we will reach 5 billion mobile subscriptions and 90 per cent of new growth will come from emerging economies. Access to mobile communication is not only transforming lives, but also breaking down barriers of isolation between people and cultures, one of the key defining aspects of poverty. It is also proven that increased mobile penetration accelerates GDP growth. We see everywhere throughout the world that mobile communication is making a meaningful difference to people’s lives, and is key to bridging the digital divide. So, if we cannot provide communication for all, we will leave many people hopelessly behind. Look at the Millennium Villages project in Africa, for example, where we are bringing connectivity to some of the world’s poorest villages. People in these villages live on US$1 a day and yet they are still prepared to pay up to 7 per cent of their income to make a few calls or send text messages. This is because they find tremendous value in connectivity. Applications for health, education, trade and weather make a huge difference to their lives. In Rwanda, this is the difference between life and death, as emergency medical services and a toll-free number mean that villagers no longer need to walk 13km to the nearest health facility. Mobile learning is making it possible to train community health workers remotely, and applications enable the collection of vital health statistics, including birth and death registration. In India and Bangladesh, we are running a telemedicine pilot in 18 villages together with Apollo, a large hospital operator. It has shown that even people with an average income of US$1 per day can get access to medical care. We are currently working to scale up this project to some 200,000 villages over the next 3-5 years. Mobile connectivity not only enables basic voice communication, it is also the foundation for bringing health, education, small business development and security to communities. Governments should therefore stimulate and embrace the use and deployment of mobile broadband services, to the benefit of citizens, enterprises and public agencies. The strong support of governments is needed to create an open deregulated telecommunications market with clear game rules. This will attract long-term investment and ultimately make end-user devices more affordable and the benefits of communications available to everyone. When it comes to the telecommunications industry and ICT in general, our commitment to closing the digital divide should not be about charity, but rather about realizing what our core business can bring to humanity. Telecommunications for a carbon-leaner society There is another area where telecommunications and IT can make a huge difference, and that is climate change, as there is no doubt that this is one of the biggest challenges facing society. As global climate negotiations resume this year in Copenhagen, society faces the huge challenge of drastically reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 2050, while the world economy as much as triples. We need to find fresh solutions, not only by substituting carbon-intensive travel but also by developing cross-sector initiatives such as smart utility grids and other digital solutions. We are now promoting the adoption of a common industry framework for measuring CO2 savings using telecom and sharing our vision with decision makers of the world in the run-up to upcoming climate negotiations. The ICT industry creates two per cent of the total global CO2 emissions so we are controlling our own emissions through the development of new technologies and the use of alternative energy sources such as solar, wind and hybrid power. In fact, we reduced the energy consumption in our base stations by 80 per cent between 2000 and 2008. However, what is actually more important is what we in the industry can do to reduce the 98 per cent produced by other industries. Independent research suggests that the ICT sector can contribute to a 15-20 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions by simply contributing to more intelligent methods for producing and distributing energy, maintaining buildings, travelling, socializing and so on. I think everybody agrees that if we want to deal with the sustainability issue we have to invest in technology and ICT technology is core, which is why representatives of the telecoms industry are invited to contribute at the highest-level debates on how to build a more intelligent society. Through technology, we have both the opportunity and the responsibility to work toward a more sustainable society. And in the long run, I am firmly convinced that this commitment will generate lasting value.

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