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Economics Information Technology Trend Watching

Watch Clay Shirky’s “How social media can make history” talk at TED

While news from Iran streams to the world, Clay Shirky shows social media help citizens in repressive regimes to report on real news, bypassing censors (however briefly). The end of top-down control of news is changing the nature of politics […]

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Information Technology Innovation

Clay Shirky’s “Institutions versus collaboration” talk at TED

In this prescient 2005 talk, Clay Shirky shows how closed groups and companies will give way to looser networks where small contributors have big roles and fluid cooperation replaces rigid planning […]

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China Economics Information Technology

Chinese People and Their Mobile Phones: 6 Telecoms to Merge Their Assets

China has told its six telecommunications companies to merge their assets, allowing fixed-line carriers to expand into wireless services and creating three operators that will offer phone and Internet connections to 1.3 billion people. Under the plan, the parent of China Telecom will buy a mobile phone network from the parent of China Unicom, which in turn will merge with the company that controls the China Netcom Group, the Ministry of Industry and Information said in a statement on Saturday. China will issue three third-generation wireless licenses after the overhaul is completed, it said…

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China Information Technology

Internet in China: Shanghai to establish the first citywide wireless broadband network in mainland China

Shanghai will have established a citywide wireless broadband network by 2010: Shanghai’s Municipal Informatization Commission and China Telecom Shanghai revealed that wireless demonstration areas will be ready for use in 2008. A number of regions are currently competing to become exhibition areas and obtain future construction projects. At present, people can access a wireless network in Jiading District in the north of Shanghai. Wireless will probably be available in most areas in the city’s central Huangpu District, where the municipal government buildings are located, by the end of the year, said Hua Ruiqiang, Shanghai Telecom’s senior manager […]

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China Economics Information Technology Software

Shanghai IT income set to beat US$128billion

Revenue of Shanghai’s information technology industry is set to double last year’s figure to surpass 1 trillion yuan (US$128 billion) in 2010 when the World Expo is held here. The city will invest heavily in several IT projects for the expo, such as a citywide wireless broadband network, a digital transport management network, electronic payment and social security systems, paper-less customs application system and mobile TV, according to Shanghai Municipal Informatization Commission […]