reasingly sophisticated and is Customer service needs Regulatory & political Service Competition infrastructure providers Economic considerations Pressure groups Equipment suppliers Standards Technology Environment Figre 11.1 A simplified telecommunication model. Vertical arrows are enablers. Horizontal arrows are constraints. 11/4 The telecommunications industry demanding continually improving services, for use at the workplace Economic considerations vary between countries, and is often a and at home. However customers must obtain a significant benefit matter of perception in the importance of telecommunications. In from a new service before they will use it. The fact that it is based the developed countries, for example, telephones serve between on a new technology does not interest them. The service must meet 50% and 80% of the population, whilst in many developing coun- actual needs at an economical price and be universally available. It tries it is well below 10%. Part of the reason for this is the lower is important that the services are integrated into the network so that finance available in these countries, but they also spend a much multiple services are provided by a single network. smaller part of their GDP (below 1%) on telecommunications com- The growth of VCRs has been largely attributed to the fact that pared to developed countries (between 1.25% and 2.0%). users can record a television programme and then view it in their Investment by a service provider in telecommunications cannot own time. This is a different market from that at which the VCR was usually be justified only on the cost savings it introduces, but future originally targeted. Users bought to meet their actual needs, not that revenues generated must also be taken into account. Other consider- which was assumed by the marketer. It is also assumed that once ations are the need to minimise the total network life cycle (initial high definition television has been viewed users will be unwilling cost plus ongoing maintenance), and the imp