Provision of universal broadband service in Japan: A policy challenge toward a sustainable ICT infrastructure

This presentation outlines a proposal for a new frame work for the provision of universal service aimed at solving the various issues inherent in community informatization, and goes on to look at the advantages and disadvantages of the proposed framework and review its feasibility. In order to ensure that telecommunications services are universally accessible, in less favored areas, universal service is currently provided for analog landline telephones by using a universal service fund system to supplement a portion of costs of the qualified telecommunications carriers. With the development of optical networks, optical IP phones have also been included as a technology for which universal service is provided, but at the same time dependence on land line phones is decreasing due to the popularity and convenience of cell-phones. As this is accompanied by developments such as the fact thatalmost100%of Japanese households now have broadband access, there is a pressing need for radical review of the system from a technical perspective. Additionally, given that consumers' organizations and other bodies strongly oppose the fact that carriers pass on the burden of their universal service fund contributions so that the full amount of contributions is shared between telephone number users, it is also necessary to reconsider the approach to how cost burdens are shared. At the same time, while 2.5GHzbandregionalBroadband Wireless Access (BWA)has been made available for providing broadband in rural areas, its level of usage is low and ensuring its utilization is a matter of urgency. This presentation will deal with these issues collectively, and propose a framework for maintaining and developing community informatization

Impact of Mobile Usage on the Interpersonal Relations

Communication via mobile telephones is widespread in East Asian metropolis such as Seoul, Taipei and Tokyo. In the last ten years, the number of mobile telephone users has increased dramatically, with the younger generation in particular depending on the services available via mobile telephones. This paper explores the relationship between the voice and text messaging communications of these young consumers through their mobile telephones and their interpersonal relations. It analyses how mobile telephone usage affects relationships between respondents by comparing models of the cause-effect relationship of several latent factors in different environments, namely dependency on mobile telephone communication, perception of friendships, individual factors and IT literacy. By applying a covariance structure analysis, the correlations between latent and observable variables can be successfully visualized. The results show that mobile telephones have little influence on the perception of relationships among the younger generation, although somewhat different structures of interdependency exist in these metropolitan areas.mobile telephone calls; text messaging; Seoul; Taipei; Tokyo; communication; younger generation; relationship and covariance structure analysis

The determinants of mobile operator switching and policy implications in developing countries: A case study of Thailand

This paper presents the analyses of the determinants of mobile carrier switching behaviour based on the idea that such the behaviour is the evidence of competition in the mobile market. Indeed, with the possibility to change a mobile service provider, there will be less concentration of customers towards any particular operator, and more distribution of market share among all competitors because the newcomer company can offer its competitive services and gain more subscribers. In order to extract the factors affecting switching decision, both quantitative and qualitative analyses are employed. Binary logit estimation is used as the quantitative method, while qualitative outcomes are derived from the composition of responses regarding carrier switching intention. This study uses a modified estimation model incorporating carrier-related switching costs inspired by Grzybowski (2008). Nevertheless, it is the analysis of a developing country in which Thailand is selected as ground for investigation. The data is collected from surveys randomly distributed within the whole country..

Cloud computing adoption and determining factors in different industries: A case study of Thailand

The cloud computing model is a modern concept of computation that provides a number of benefits for its adopters. This online computing model has been widely used in the western world and accepted to have some business and economic impacts. This paper provides some basic knowledge about cloud computing and discusses the greatest benefit which is cost reduction in fixed ICT capital and services. With such the benefit, this study attempts to find the determining factors for cloud computing adoption in various industries and proposes some policy recommendations accordingly in order to facilitate the diffusion of the innovative computing model as well as the extensive realisation of its benefit. Thailand is selected as ground for investigation. The discrete choice model of logistic regression is selected as an econometric tool to extract the relationships of different attributes and the probability of cloud computing adoption in 206 industries. The results point out significant determining factors categorised into Internet and technology; cost; and some difficulties in ICT usage. Hence, some policy implications in order to increase the possibility of adoption include an effort to improve internet capability of employees; provide some investment incentives such as tax reduction and low-cost loans for initial set-ups of cloud computing systems; and develop reliable internet network with advanced capability and low cost of use

Impact of media form on the perceived image of the television news media in the age of media convergence

The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of media form on audiences’ perceived image of the television news media. Specifically, it compares the perceived sense of presence between two different media forms –television and smartphone, and examines their effects on the perceived brand personality of a news medium. This study uses NHK –the national public broadcasters– news coverage during the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquake over the air and the Internet as a case study. Using a quantitative approach with data collected from an original survey, it is found that television as a media form provides a stronger sense of presence that smartphone, and also has a stronger influence on the perceived brand personality of a news medium, especially on its perceived competence. That being said, it is also found that smartphone can also exert some influence, in particular on the perceived dynamism and sociability of the medium

Understanding broadband under-utilization in Japan

Improved internet connectivity has been a consistent aim of Japanese telecommunications policy in the past decades, however, despite the high availability of high speed and ultra-high speed broadband services, actual use has yet to match network capacity. This study hopes to explore this paradox by looking at the factors that affect demand for broadband services. To achieve this, the relationship between overall broadband adoption and two basic demand factors, namely price of internet services and presence of a competitor in the form of wireless broadband, was examined over a 12-year period. The findings suggest that the lag in adoption can be attributed to both a higher demand for wireless connectivity and high broadband contract prices, while network effects may play a positive role in diffusion. Given that Japanese broadband policy has tended to focus more on the role of price as a mechanism for improving penetration, this study ultimately contributes to the discussion of policy efficiency by providing some empirical basis for the consideration of alternative demand-side incentives

Comparison of Diffusion Models for Forecasting the Growth of Broadband Markets in Thailand

The aim of this paper is to investigate the most accurate S-curve model, the Logistic, Gompertz, and Bass models, in forecasting the diffusion of telecommunication markets Thailand. The analyses apply the data of mobile telecommunication market and fixed-broadband market separately without the interaction between both services. The originality of this study is at the diffusion path segmentation intervened by technological change that accelerates or decelerates each market. Parameters of each model are estimated by nonlinear model estimation methodology. By applying those parameters, the accuracy of each model can be identified compared to the actual data. Following the evaluation of the goodness-of-fit and forecasting ability, the Gompertz model shows the best performance in forecasting the diffusion of mobile telecommunication and fixed broadband markets. With the more suitable forecasting model to the markets, the ultimate total number of users in the future period could be more accurately predicted

Political stability, regulation and investment in the African mobile markets

This study attempted to analyze the effect of regulation and political stability in allocation of mobile telecommunication investments in the African continent between year 2001 and 2011. In order to better understand the dynamics of investment in telecommunications, a framework was developed to understand the factors that determine investments in telecom industry at country and industry level, particularly: institutions, market size/demand level, market structure and investing cost. The results show that investments in the telecommunications industry are positively dependent on liberalization that opened the market to private sector; however, no statistical evidence was found on the effect of political stability measured by the democratic process. Further, the study has shown that market structure especially competition, and market size and cost of investing in a country are important factors for investments allocation in mobile telecommunications industry among African countries