Cellular Sigularity

This article about hyper-connectivity, found on Reuters.com last month, didn't give me much pause. It shows that more North Americans would choose their cell phone over their wallet if they had to leave their home for 24 hours with only one item.

Wouldn't you take your cell phone? I feel any situation requiring a 24 hour evacuation of my home is probably an emergency, and as such, I want to be in touch with my family, friends, and emergency services. All things that are apparently more important to me than the driver's license, college ID, Kroger card, and 27 cents in my wallet.

But what if you had to choose between your phone or your clothes?

In the States we might choose pants over hyper-connected public nudity, but citizens of the Democratic Republic of Congo would disagree.

The Washington Post ran this article in 2006 about cell phone use in the war-torn African nation.

In the article, Gilbert Nkuli of Vodacom Congo, says ""People would rather be without a shirt and trousers and they'd rather go for days without food, instead of not having a phone."

You really should read the whole article for a glimpse at how cell phones are changing the developing world; and how the developing world is changing cell phones.

Pre-paid cell phone minutes can be transferred from one phone to another, giving rise to a new barter system.

This economy is subject to virtually no regulation, doesn't require customer proximity to make a transaction and enables people in dangerous places to store their money safely... in their cell phone.

Will first world nations be outstripped by the emerging wireless markets in developing countries as they adapt more quickly and creatively to the potential of hyper-connected economy?

We might believe we started the cell phone revolution, but Americans are not using cell phones like the rest of the world, and especially Africa. According to Eprom, people in third world nations represent the majority of cell phone subscribers. Africa leads the world with an annual 65% ride in mobile phone use.

Pre-paid phone minutes may never become the leading global currency, but it isn't hard to imagine a truly global network giving rise to an economy that operates without the backing of a government.

Especially when all those cell phones in Africa start connecting to the Internet at high speeds. That Washington Post article is two years old. If and when African cell phone users start connecting, they will represent the lion's share of Internet users as well.

It may be that the cell phone will be the device that begins to close the huge economic and educational disparity between the peoples of the industrialized and developing worlds.

-Robot Crusoe


More blogs and articles to check out about cell phone use in developing countries:
Cell phones may help "save" Africa
Motorola Introduces Dirt-Cheap Cell Phone For Developing Countries
Video: Future of health care in developing nations tied to cell phones