Convergence : Policy and Regulatory Response

In the most general sense, convergence is the integration of any traditionally segmented areas of communications systems. Convergence is happening today in Egypt, and is driven by the growth of digital media and packet data communication. In specif...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: World Bank
Format: Knowledge Economy Study
Language:English
en_US
Published: Washington, DC 2013
Subjects:
3G
DSL
ICT
IP
ISP
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2007/01/16350062/egypt-convergence-policy-regulatory-response
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/12979
Description
Summary:In the most general sense, convergence is the integration of any traditionally segmented areas of communications systems. Convergence is happening today in Egypt, and is driven by the growth of digital media and packet data communication. In specific terms, it is essential that the Government of Egypt should create the environment in which convergence can occur without impediment. This will allow increased and risk-reduced investment in the ICTs sector, positively influence employment and industry growth, and enable Egypt to establish itself as a hub for content and services for the Arab world. Indirect impacts such as the effect on employment in the ICT sector and in the upstream content industry are more difficult to quantify without a detailed analysis of these individual industries in Egypt. However, the evidence from other countries indicates that these sectors could be significant in terms of the contribution to the economic output of the country and employment. Finally, we also considered the overall impact of the sector on economic growth in Egypt. It is not possible to isolate the specific impact of convergence on economic growth. However, to the extent that convergence leads to increased investment and use of ICT, international evidence indicates that there would be a positive impact on long-run rates of economic growth.