Lucy Spencer

"I’m taking everybody’s privacy away!” Robert Scoble, Entrepreneur in Residence at Upload VR, declared during his Centre Stage debate at Web Summit 2016. Wearing a pair of Microsoft HoloLens’, next-generation “mixed reality” glasses, Scoble debated whether we are sacrificing too much of our privacy in the name of technological advancement. But how will we ensure our privacy when mixed reality devices are commercially available?

Though regulation will be key to ensuring citizens’ privacy, Scoble says that governments may not be able to fill the need: “The governments are behind, and they will be behind forever. There is no way you can keep up with technology that’s happening this fast.” So, it will be up to the industry to self-regulate, Scoble reckons. But will it be enough?

An Indian government-funded project to provide 2G mobile coverage to unserved areas in India’s North-East Region received no bids from telecom operators.

An estimated INR53.36 billion (USD798 million) was made available from the Universal Service Obligation Fund to help support the roll-out, which would have helped connect some of the more than 9,000 villages currently not connected to a mobile network. India has made rapid strides in the rollout of 3G, as well as 4G, particularly in urban areas where many operators are choosing to invest more heavily due to higher average revenue per user and lower infrastructure costs. Yet in India – as in many other emerging markets – 2G remains important for connecting citizens and improving lives, especially in unconnected rural areas.