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Technology not a luxury: Levin

BS ICE Bureau

High technology is seen by some as a luxury that should come only after basic needs have been satisfied. But Gerald Levin, chief executive of the world's biggest media and entertainment conglomerate AOL-Time Warner, thinks otherwise.

Citing the example of information technology, Levin says technology is not just a reward of successful development, but a critical tool for achieving it.

Delivering an address on 'The Internet: Infrastructure of Freedom' at an interactive session organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry here today, Levin said: "For example, with the increase in rural connectivity, farmers can obtain meteorological and agricultural information, contact micro-credit lenders and get higher prices for their products."

Levin said new technology made it possible for entertainment and media products to be distributed widely. He cited the example of magazines, music, and in future, movies reaching a larger number of people through the Internet.

Video-on-demand would enable audiences to find the films they want to see, and help films to find the audiences, he said.

Levin dispelled fears of media dominance in the modern era saying: "A few years ago, the global media was dominated by a handful of entities that could send whatever they wanted to every part of the globe. Today every part of the earth can send whatever it wants to any other part, thanks to the Internet."

Levin praised India as an example of a developing country leveraging the advantages of digital enterprise.

"India is an excellent example. With its competitive telecommunications systems, favourable tax policies, long-standing commitment to intellectual property rights and world-class educational institutions, India has integrated into the global economy as an exporter of software and knowledge-industry services," he said.

Stating that digital technology helped to create the economic environment that made human freedom possible, Levin said the technology also played a direct role in political empowerment.

"It is not a coincidence that the past years have seen a revolution in communications technology and the doubling of the number of countries with democratically elected governments. Networked communications increase the demand for democracy and provide the means to achieve it, enabling people to share ideas and organise action," he said.

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