AudiencScapes

By César Caballero29 March 2010 (Bogota, Colombia)--In “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,” the science historian Thomas Kuhn asserts that such revolutions take place when a dramatic shift occurs in the prevailing paradigm: the lens through which we view the realities of the world. [1] In Colombia, the growth of information technology and the communication sector in the last 5 years clearly constitutes a radical transformation in the way in which we view and how we relate to the world. According to the Public Services Superintendent’s Office, the number of Colombians with a fixed telephone line has been decreasing, from a peak of 7.92 million in 2007 to 7.73 million at the end of 2009 , or from one in every18 habitants to one in every 17.

By Giovanna MonteverdeSenior Project Manager for Latin America, InterMedia3 March 2010(Bogota, Colombia)-- In the last three years, the Colombian capital has seen the emergence of an informal street market for mobile phone minutes. At nearly every corner or shopping mall, you can see vendors selling mobile minutes alongside their typical offerings of cigarettes, candies and chips. This informal market has allowed many more people, especially from low-income neighborhoods, to have access to and use mobile phones when they are needed. I have been to nearly every major city in Latin America recently, and this is the only place where I have seen such a system operating. It seemed to begin about three or four years ago when mobile phone plans became very accessible.