Abstract
Telecommunications networks of India and the People’s Republic of China are among the largest in the world. The two economies have a number of areas for broadband use ripe for exploration. Broadband networks in some regions in these two economies are even more developed than in some parts of the industrialized world. There are, however, a number of reasons to believe that these two countries may exhibit distinct and varied patterns of broadband diffusion. This chapter compares and contrasts the diffusion patterns of broadband technology in the two economies. We examine factors driving broadband diffusion in the two economies in three major categories: demand and cost conditions, industry structure, and export conditions.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Time Division - Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA): A 3G mobile telecommunications standard being pursued in China.
Internet: The “global information system that (i) is logically linked together by a globally unique address space based on the Internet protocol (IP) or its subsequent extensions/follow-ons; (ii) is able to support communications using the transmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP) suite or its subsequent extensions/follow-ons, and/or other IP-compatible protocols; and (iii) provides, uses, or makes accessible, either publicly or privately, high level services layered on the communications and related infrastructure described herein” (The Federal Networking Council definition).
Gross Domestic Product (GDP): The sum of the total value of consumption expenditure, total value of investment expenditure, and government purchases of goods and services.
E-Commerce: Any transaction in which at least one of the following activities– production, distribution, marketing, sale, or delivery–takes place by electronic means.
Internet Protocol Television (IPTV): A system in which a digital TV service is delivered using the Internet protocol.
Offshore Outsourcing: Subcontracting a company’s noncore business processes to an external service provider in a foreign country.
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL): A family of technologies providing digital data transmission over the wires of a local telephone network.
Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs): Technologies that facilitate the capturing, processing, storage, and transfer of information.