MEDIA RELEASE PR37633
Investment in Educational Services Creates Opportunity for Operators
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Dec. 18 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
The use of mobile technology in education will increase as access and devices become more widely available to
lower-income consumers and rural areas, making educational services a major growth opportunity for operators.
However, there are some critical aspects to delivering successful information and communication technologies
(ICT) programs, according to a new report from Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com).
Internet-Based Education Initiatives: More Funding Is Creating More Opportunity highlights some important
aspects in delivering successful and long-term ICT educational programs. It starts by highlighting the importance
of taking a whole-system approach to an educational ICT initiative. This 16-page report then looks at the factors
that help ensure the initiative is viable and can provide lasting benefits, and highlight the role - traditionally
addressed by PCs and fixed-line technologies - that mobile technology can play in education. Finally, it offers
several case studies of the use of ICT in education from around the world, indicating the diverse ways in which
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Investments in ICT in education continue to be an important area of development, particularly where private
sector investment and households have seen declines in income and spending, notes Jan ten Sythoff, author of the
report and analyst at Pyramid Research. Mobile technology will have an increasingly important role to play in
educational service, due to its availability, affordability and ease of use. "Pyramid believes that to be successful,
ICT investments in education in developing regions need to be tailored to local needs and designed for long-term
financial viability," he says, "and mobile technology should be increasingly integrated, given its widespread
availability and affordability."
"Successful educational ICT programs need to look at the larger picture, including hardware, software, access,
content, and training," Sythoff says. "For example, the MTN Schools Connect project in Nigeria encompasses
hardware, access, and training and also includes the provision of electricity, which is, of course, key for all ICT
projects and is not always available," he explains.
Coordination at several different levels provides the best results. "ICT investments in education should not be
looked at in isolation but also in conjunction with other government policies, such as encouraging competition
in ICT markets to increase availability and decrease costs," says Sythoff. "Mozambique is an example where a
coordinated government policy has driven Internet access rates over the past few years, and is currently enjoying
the benefits, including higher Internet usage, improvements in education levels and lower poverty rates."
Internet-Based Education Initiatives: More Funding Is Creating More Opportunity is part of Pyramid Research's
Global Telecom Insider report series. Telecom Insiders are packed with trend analysis, industry best practices,
market sizing and forecasting, competitor analysis, and case studies, providing you information you can leverage to
make better business decisions.
This report is priced at $595 and can be purchased online here
Vega at avega@pyr.com or telephone at +1-619-229-9940.
For more information about Pyramid Research's products and services, please visit www.pyr.com or contact us
at info@pyr.com.
About Pyramid Research
Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com) offers practical solutions to the complex demands our clients face in the
telecommunications, media and technology industries. Our analysis is uniquely positioned at the intersection of
emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models, powered by the bottom-up methodology
of our market forecasts for over 100 countries - a distinction that has remained unmatched for more than 25 years.
As the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network, Pyramid Research works with Heavy
Reading, providing the communications industry's most comprehensive market data, trusted research and insightful
technology analysis.
About Light Reading
Founded in 2000, Light Reading (www.lightreading.com) is the leading online media, research, and focused
event company serving the $3 trillion worldwide communications market. Lightreading.com is the ultimate source
for technology and financial analysis of the communications industry, leading the media sector in terms of traffic,
content, and reputation. Light Reading's research arms, Heavy Reading and Pyramid Research, provide the most
comprehensive communications research, market data, and technology analysis in close to 100 markets around
the world. Light Reading produces nearly 20 targeted communications events including TelcoTV, Ethernet Expo
New York and Ethernet Expo London, The Tower Summit @ CTIA, and Optical Expo, as well as focused one-day
events tailored for cable, mobile, and wireline executives. Light Reading was acquired by United Business Media in
August 2005 and operates as a unit of TechWeb.
About TechWeb
business focused on serving the needs of technology decision-makers and marketers worldwide. TechWeb
produces the most respected and consumed media brands in the business technology market. Today, more than
13.3 million* business technology professionals actively engage in our communities created around our global face-
to-face events, Interop, Web 2.0, Black Hat, and VoiceCon; online resources such as the TechWeb Network, Light
Reading, Intelligent Enterprise, InformationWeek.com, bMighty.com, and The Financial Technology Network; and
the market leading, award-winning InformationWeek, TechNet Magazine, MSDN Magazine, and Wall Street &
Technology magazines. TechWeb also provides end-to-end services including next-generation performance
marketing, integrated media, research, and analyst services. TechWeb is a division of United Business Media, a
global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than
$2.5 billion.
*13.3 million business decision-makers: based on number of monthly connections
About United Business Media Limited
UBM (UBM.L) focuses on two principal activities: worldwide information distribution, targeting and monitoring;
and, the development and monetization of B2B communities and markets. UBM's businesses inform markets and
serve professional commercial communities - from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders,
from farmers to pharmacists - with integrated events, online, print and business information products. Our 6,500
staff in more than 30 countries are organized into specialist teams that serve these communities, bringing buyers
and sellers together, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently. For more
Press contact:
Jennifer Baker
+1 617 871-1910
jbaker@pyr.com
SOURCE: Pyramid Research
CONTACT: Jennifer Baker,
+1-617-871-1910,
jbaker@pyr.com
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