CURATED BY NIKI DE WITT
Singtel and Digicel, the first two mobile companies given permission to run in Mynmar, will aim to provide 96 percent of the country with wireless coverage in just a few years. The country is also starting to get connected through social networks like Facebook and even Burmese-language Squar, which bring locals together and shares local information with them. While the road ahead is not likely to be the smoothest, these companies are working to get things moving.
FROM FASTCOMPANY
On June 27, the government of Myanmar will grant the first two licenses to foreign mobile companies to operate in the country. Digicel, based in the Caribbean, and Singtel, out of Singapore, have both pledged to invest billions to bring wireless coverage to 96% of the country within a few years. (The government has set a goal of 80% coverage by 2015.) They’ve already begun to scout real estate, hire locals, and in Digicel’s case, sponsor the national football league.
After five decades of repressive military dictatorship, human rights violations, systematic violence and isolation from the rest of the world, the sudden political and economic thaw in the Southeast Asian country of Myanmar has opened the floodgates for a frenzy of innovation, as 60 million people prepare to get online for the first time. Currently, less than 10 percent of the population is estimated to have access to a mobile phone (all these numbers are estimates, since there hasn’t been an official census in years). SIM cards, which are rationed by the government and sold for less than $2 each, can be bought on the black market for $250-$300 a pop. HTC, Samsung and Huawei phones are for sale everywhere on the street. …Continue Reading
Niki is currently exploring Asia while working on a children’s book series about travel. As a child, she traveled and moved often for her parents’ jobs. As a result of this, she has always felt most at home when she’s off and away. She is interested in international films, working on building an impressive tea collection, and can often be found with her camera in hand. You can have a look-see at her blog and follow her on Twitter @nikidding.
Photo Myanmar Wireless Internet by eGuide Travel