Teleuse@BOP : Implications for Civil Society Capacity Building and Democracy

1. Teleuse@BOP: Implications for Civil Society Capacity Building and Democracy Lorraine Carlos Salazar Visiting Research Fellow Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) & Senior Researcher Lirneasia Lorraine@iseas.edu.sg, salazar@lirne.net www.lirneasia.net

2. Outline • Findings from Lirneasia’s 2006 Multi-country Study • Background & methodology • Everyone has access, but not ownership • Usage patterns • Who owns phones? Why? • BOP is prepaid • SMS use and its relative cost • Missed calls • Internet…what Internet? • Examples of SMS use in the Philippines • Akbayan’s use of SMS in election monitoring • Among Ed and Grace Padaca, the good and the bad • OFW SOS • Reflections and Conclusion

3. Bottom of the pyramid Background & methodology

4. Methodology Qualitative Quantitative 6 Focus Group Discussions per country (30) Random sample 8,660 F-to-F interviews; in 5 countries 50% diary Final output

5. SEC A, B & C SEC D & E Bottom of the Pyramid(BOP)defined • Many definitions of poverty, but this study uses SEC D and E; between ages 18-60 • SEC does not take into account income, but it is closely related to income levels *excluding FANA/FATA – Tribal Areas; **excluding N&E Provinces

6. Quantitative sample • BOP segment is representative of the BOP population • Diary respondents also representative of BOP • Small (non-representative sample) taken of SEC groups A, B & C

7. Teleuse@BOP • ~9,000 sample survey in five countries • India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Philippines & Thailand • Understand telecom use at the BOP (= SEC Groups D &E) in Developing Asia • Representative of target population • SEC D&E, ages 18-60

8. Country profiles Notes: India on an April – March reporting period ; Pakistan on a July – June reporting period; Other countries follow Jan – Dec (calendar year) reporting periods. Sources: India-COAI, TRAI; Thailand–Company Reports; Pakistan–PTA; Philippines–NTC; Sri Lanka- TRC; 2000 onwards from company reports; World Bank (2006); CIA Fact Book (2005)

9. Bottom of the Pyramid Everyone has access, but not ownership

10. Access (used a phone in the preceding 3 months) • Most have used a phone in the last 3 months Kofi Annan’s statement in 1999 that “half of the world’s population has not made a phone call” was not true then and absolutely wrong now

11. Time to reach nearest phone the BOP • Most can get to a phone in less than 30 minutes

12. Urban-rural divide: Mostly in Pakistan & India Time to nearest phone

13. Access modes among BOP phone users • S Asia BOP mainly used public phones; SE Asia mobiles

14. High access, but low ownership levels at BOP • Phone ownership is low in South Asia, higher in Philippines and Thailand

15. How often phone owners allow others to use their phones

16. Number of mobiles within the respondent’s household

17. Bottom of the pyramid Usage patterns

18. Average number of calls (incoming & outgoing) per month • Approximately one call per day (except Thailand) Source: Diary

19. Average call durations Source: Diary

20. Call destination (type of call) Source: Diary

21. Call purposes (primary) Source: Diary

22. Bottom of the pyramid Who owns phones? Why? 29% of BOP in owned a phone in mid-2006

23. Phone ownership: urban vs. rural

24. Mean age of phone owners

25. Why own a mobile phone? • Convenience is key

26. Growth in mobile phone ownership at BOP since 2001

27. Handsets

28. Who decides female ownership of phone at BOP? Patriarchal South Asia, more empowered women in Southeast Asia! Who makes the decision to obtain a mobile (among female mobile owners)? % of female mobile owners at BOP

29. Why own a fixed phone?

30. Older fixed connections

31. Bottom of the Pyramid BOP is prepaid

32. Prepaid vs. postpaid mobile packages (among mobile owners)

33. Reasons for choosing prepaid • Prepaid helps to ‘control expenditure;’ reasons are largely cost-related

34. Time to travel to location where mobile owner can re-credit mobile

35. Bottom of the pyramid SMS use and its relative cost

36. Use of SMS at the bottom of the pyramid Lowest SMS prices ‘SMS capital of the world’

37. Frequency of SMS use

38. Urban vs. rural SMS use

39. Call vs. SMS charges: Prepaid Low cost of SMS in the Philippines compared to India, but also higher literacy, Roman-based language and facility in using SMS • * Call charges weighted for local and national calls • Charges as at June 2007 • Packages selected based on lowest connection charge package of the largest operator

40. Bottom of the pyramid Missed calls

41. Use of missed calls: by mobile and fixed phone owners! • Missed calls used just as much in the SEC A,B & C samples

42. Use of missed calls: Males vs. females

43. Other strategies

44. Bottom of the Pyramid Getting connected 115 million from BOP will get connected between mid-2006 & mid-2008

45. Those that planned to get connected between mid-2006-2008 Prospective owners

46. Projected BOP penetration

47. Most would use phone for emergency communication & keeping in touch

48. Type of phone that prospective owner would buy

49. Bottom of the Pyramid Not getting connected 165 million from BOP will not get connected between mid-2006 & mid-2008

50. BUT, 42% will not Potential primary market for telecenters The biggest barrier to ownership at the BOP is affordability • 29% plan to get connected between mid-2006 and mid-2008