In a global world, remote area connectivity can be the toolkit that enables innovation.

It’s well known Internet provide us entertainment, cultural expression, facilitate friendships – and particularly important to remote areas – enable us to stay in touch with friends & family in country & internationally.

Remote Broadband Enables Innovation.

In developed countries, broadband in remote or rural areas can enable eGovernment services that supersede the paper forms & 1 hour drive to the nearest bank or post office. Today, I’m sitting in the audience of the eGovernment forum at CeBIT.

Particularly salient to ‘Rural Connectivity’ was Robert Schwarten of Queensland Government point about the Australian National Broadband Network enabling new business & consumer services to remote Queensland rural homesteads. Services that weren’t available 30 years ago.

He used as the example a remote homestead doing business via the internet with Caterpillar in the USA. Unthinkable but 30 years ago. Or at least, requiring a greater investment of time & effort to send & receive letters or telexes, increasing the time & cost.

Equally in US, Australian or other small towns, I have seen internet transform lives and provide a portal to the outside world – allowing those with big minds in small places some measure of reaching out.

Competitive Advantage.

As a national example, a world-class high-speed network National Broadband Network for Australia is an important tool that gives Australia a competitive advantage. Strategically, a redundant network to the existing national Telstra network is also important.

The degree to which any nation has a super-fast, ubiquitous internet, with reliable big-pipe connections that nation has a platform for innovation. Particularly significant is that in the 2thinknow models, this enables implementation of ideas & access to global markets from remote areas.

In short, super-fast internet reduces the costs of distance for remote regions worldwide.  This enables new global & local businesses to be created or expanded. Creating new economic growth.

(Also the internet provides information that may inspire ideas in an environment where idea-stimulus from magazines, arts, culture & interaction may be limited.)

2thinknow has a working model which explains the economic & other returns from innovation, such as broadband enabling. This provides a tool for others to argue for improving broadband or infrastructure.

There will also be losers. Some countries and regions within nations, will expand their competitive disadvantage by not having the necessary high-speed internet or reliable connections.

Pirates & Terrorists.

It’s often forgotten that technology that enables positive change, also enables negative change. The connectivity of the Somali pirates, and Afghan mountain terrorists has been a key weapon in their damaging effects on trade, business & society.

Of course, caution must be exercised, and strategically such enabling must be carefully considered in it’s ubiquity. In any technology there will be negative effects, often social.

The good news is that one negative often merely replaces another negative. The tool though can enable new negative behaviours. We hardly want better connected pirates, terrorists & drug-dealers. IP issues also abound, among various strategic issues that need further discussion to expand and mitigate.

Secure Networks.

Part of the security answer? Jack Cassidy of Bearing Point; and Dr Mark Anderson of DSTO would have pointed this out yesterday at AusInnovate. Separate, intensely non-political body, must monitor the security of the system.

And identity, perhaps partial, must be a part of any system. This must balance Privacy, Security & Performance – and must default to Open.

How of Internet?

In this there are 2 views. Cable (be it fibre-optic or copper) or Wireless. Of course there’s also satellite but that has further limitations.

Without examining it in depth, wired networks are the only reliable internet connection. Wireless is too easily impeded by obstacles; and should be the last resort.

2thinknow can develop & customise modelling tools that allow Government and Business to model the innovation benefits of Broadband; in economics & social terms.

In our view, super-fast wired internet provides regions with a competitive Innovation Advantage that enables them to advance above and beyond competing nations; and create a great degree of mid-term economic wealth.

For nations, for the next decades, success in super-fast broadband will make a large difference in Nation Innovation, economics and social desirability.