Just because we've always done it that way doesn't mean we always need to
I just encountered another example of how re-imagining the way we deliver services can enable very low-cost access to communications. My friend RJ Honicky wrote a paper in 2007 with colleagues at UC Berkeley describing how a “voice message mostly” mobile phone system could lead to improved equipment utilization, better service coverage, better quality of service, and much lower costs in developing countries.
The paper came out six years ago, so some technical details have no doubt changed, but the basic lesson is still a powerful one. Just because we deployed mobile communications in a certain way in developed countries doesn’t mean we need to do the same thing in other places, and changing the business model for these services can result in substantial cost reductions and energy savings.
Honicky, R. J., Omar Bakr, Michael Demmer, and Eric Brewer. 2007. A message oriented phone system for low cost connectivity. [http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.91.1694&rep=rep1&type=pdf]
