communications

25.02.2008 Japanese telecom leader NTT DoCoMo unveiled an innovative Bluetooth handset, the “Sound Leaf Plus” at the recent Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The light-weight mobile works when pressed against the bone below the ear and has a high frequency switch for improved sound articulation.

22.02.2008 Blogging, internet chat rooms and sites have become the safest ways for gay Africans and Arabs to meet, while keeping their identities secret. Caution is after all crucial as homosexual acts are illegal in most countries in Africa and the Middle East.

21.02.2008 The Sinazongwe District Development Committee in Southern Zambia has opened up an advocacy centre for its community. The advocacy centre based at Malima will provide services to over two thousand people from the area and will be used to access various ICTs.

21.02.2008 An Indian private telecom company, Reliance Communications has announced Gramada Phone scheme in Karnataka with the aim of connecting rural areas and enabling people to take advantage of various economic opportunities. Under the scheme, 200,000 connections are to be provided by the end of March at a nominal price.

20.02.2008 Steve Buckley of the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters was in India recently. Aware of the countless hurdles faced by community radio in the country, he said that the policy here was restrictive in nature.

19.02.2008 Even while a US-based body is running tests to see whether it will offer domain names in non-Roman alphabets, in countries such as India mobile companies are wooing rural users by offering services in local scripts to overcome the language barrier.

17.02.2008 Menteri Komunikasi dan Informatika Mohammad Nuh merasa senang karena Indonesia dianggapnya telah berhasil mengejar ketertinggalan di bidang teknologi komunikasi informasi (ICT), khususnya di bidang telekomunikasi.

17.02.2008 The Indonesian government is determined to utilize the information technology effectively to support efforts to increase the national competitiveness. This aspiration is reflected in the Indonesian.

14.02.2008 A dozen auto rickshaws or e-Tuktuks equipped with laptops, printers, telephones, recorders, and the Internet roam the villages in remote Sri Lanka, combining the services of a traditional telecenter and radio station. So ingenious was the concept that it won the Stockhom Challenge GKP Award in Kuala Lumpur last December.

14.02.2008 A dozen auto rickshaws or e-Tuktuks equipped with laptops, printers, telephones, recorders, and the Internet roam the villages in remote Sri Lanka, combining the services of a traditional telecenter and radio station. So ingenious was the concept that it won the Stockhom Challenge GKP Award in Kuala Lumpur last December.

14.02.2008 Nokia’s navigations tools will soon render the paper maps sold on streets a thing of the past. Wallets, cash, credit cards will all be replaced by a mobile wallet. Location-based social networking will allow the user to find out the exact location of his or her buddies.

07.02.2008 The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) was the largest single event in international debate on information and communications technologies (ICTs) during the past ten years. It absorbed a great deal of the time and resources of international organisations, governments, civil society organisations and businesses over a four-year period (2001 to 2005). It produced four documents setting out aspirations for the information society. It provided a framework for international discussion of infrastructure finance and internet governance. But it received only limited public attention and failed to bridge the paradigm gap between the worlds of information technology and international development. Sixteen months after it ended, its impact – on all parties – seems to be receding as technology and policy debate move on to meet new challenges.

06.02.2008 Lembaga Kampung Halaman membuat program ”Kami Bicara” untuk 10 sekolah dari berbagai daerah. Isinya antara lain mengajak murid-murid memvideokan aktivitas positifnya. Lalu, hasilnya di-upload ke web blog untuk sosialisasi ke masyarakat luas.

05.02.2008 A UNESCO publication titled: CR: A user’s guide to the Technology is an excellent manual for potential community radio operators. With Indian government planning to set up 4,000 stations, the manual is a handy reference for starting a radio station in the country.

05.02.2008 Teknologi Informasi (TI) yang kini berkembang amat pesat tak bisa dipungkiri memberikan kontribusi yang signifikan terhadap seluruh proses globalisasi ini. Mulai dari wahana TI yang paling sederhana (radio dan televisi), hingga internet dan ponsel, informasi mengalir dengan sangat cepat dan menyeruak ruang kesadaran banyak orang.

01.02.2008 Large parts of Middle East and India are facing disruption of Internet services due to damage to two undersea cables in the Mediterranean. It will take at least a week’s time to restore the severed cables.