Cellphones Bring Information And Power To World's Poor

from the dialing-in dept

Mon, Oct 16th 2006 10:26am — Joseph Weisenthal

There have been a lot of stories about cellphones in the developing world, and how rapidly they've been adopted, even among the poor. The Washington Post has a fascinating look at how trade workers in India, use cellphones to improve their business. Fishermen, for example, use cellphones to coordinate their boats and get real-time pricing information. This allows them to take their fish to the market where the highest prices are being offered, which offers a direct financial benefit. Farmers also benefit from better pricing information, but have also found a good business use for cameraphones. With them, they are able to take pictures of diseased crops and send them to specialists who can diagnose and recommend a course of action. Again, the cellphone offers a tangible benefit to the business. One professor quoted in the article sums up the significance of cellphones very well, "One element of poverty is the lack of information. The cellphone gives poor people as much information as the middleman." That's much more compelling than the detached argument put forth by some western intellectuals who decry the advance of new technology on moral grounds.

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14 Comments

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first post, 16 Oct 2006 @ 11:22am

cell phones suck
poor people are ok
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Sanguine Dream, 16 Oct 2006 @ 11:37am

I can see it now...
::A fisherman calls the local market for today's prices::

"I'm sorry you cannot complete the call you have dialed."

There lives are hard enough but someone wants to add even more insult to injury by giving them (more than likely) unreliable cell phones?

I I know just make sure they don't get American cell phone service and they'll be okay.
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- Mousky, 16 Oct 2006 @ 12:12pm
  
  Re: I can see it now...
  And they don't get American-style cell phone service - they get reliable service with excellent coverage.
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- Anonymous Coward, 16 Oct 2006 @ 3:33pm
  
  Re: I can see it now...
  Sucks to be you. Never had a problem and I travel cross-country plenty.
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fromIndia, 16 Oct 2006 @ 1:03pm

Popularity
One of the conscious decisions that was made by Indias cell phone service providers is that the incoming phone calls are completely free. A lot of street vendors have cell phone and people call them and they deliver grocery, produce to the callers' houses. It is amazing how the system works. SMS is popular as it is a means of asynchronous communication. The voice mail never took off in India.
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Tashi, 16 Oct 2006 @ 1:07pm

The whole cell phone culture at least in the parts of SE Asia that I've seen is much more viable for personal and business reasons for consumers, even poor consumers than the U.S. market is by a long shot.
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From the Philippines, 16 Oct 2006 @ 1:23pm

waiting for a jeepney in Quezon City
I was in the Philippines pondering using my cell phone and I asked a woman feverishly text messaging with an apparently bionic thumb, how much was it to send a text message. The conversation went something like this:

Me: How much is it to send a text message?
Her: Text message is free.
Me: FREE?! In the US I have to pay 10 cents to send and receive a text. So 20 cents apiece from both parties. (no monthly plan)
Her: Oh! Here we only have to pay for our loads.

The biggest difference seems to be:
In the USA - Pay little to nothing for a phone. Sign a two year contract and pay outrageous monthly fees or outrageous fees outside of paying monthly for extra features. Listen to cell phone companies brag about their connection quality and lack of dropped calls that in reality, suck. Two blocks from my house I can't even get a signal.

In Asia:
Pay a substantial amount for the phone up front. Services are relatively cheap to free. Quality of service is reflected in where it is used, which is sometimes in remote, isolated areas.
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Sum Dum Guy, 16 Oct 2006 @ 1:42pm

On the upside-

They will have the same customer service we outsource to...... :P
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- Tashi, 16 Oct 2006 @ 1:46pm
  
  Re:
  LOL!
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Yo ho ho..., 16 Oct 2006 @ 2:44pm

of course...
... it would help if they were edible. hungry? unemployed? malnourished and undereducated? --- here have a McCellphone!

This is corporate capitalism at its finest!

Next!
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km4, 16 Oct 2006 @ 2:52pm

Joe good post. Cel phones are egalitarian and information is can be empowering especially if you are being hosed by unscrupulous middlemen who are hucksters ( like most of them are ) !
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Oct 2006 @ 3:32pm

...put forth by some western intellectuals...

Hrm... same smart people who think G.W.B. (and friends) are doing a great job? "Western intellectuals" is rapidly becoming an oxymoron in many aspects.
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PleX, 16 Oct 2006 @ 6:30pm

w00t
Hell this is obvious, more ppl who can be smuggled from N. Korea to China w00t
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A. Kootstra, 17 Oct 2006 @ 12:48am

Pace of Life
Though the cell/mobile phone will certainly offer the middle class business man in the developing world an additional edge to compete with, the social/cultural impact of this change should not be underestimated. For example: many villages are simply not big enough, or too remote for a phone company to install land line to. These villages often do have cell/mobile phone reception. This will allow, perhaps in time, to receive internet wirelessly but also to be reached by family in a different remote village. In case of family emergency this could save lives and or give people additional options.
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