The social impact of emerging telephone services

William H. Dutton

Powerpoint by:

Corey Christiansen

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Social Impact of Telecommunication

Controversial and complexNeeds to be examined before

technology is utilizedDriven more by technical than social

rationalityConsumers are unaware of

consequences until they arise

Opportunities Gained

MultifacetedEconomicPoliticalSociological?

Problems That Arise

Invasion of privacyMost pervasiveSharing of personal information, usually by

family members In the UK especially, the telephone was

seen as being intrusive & impoliteEx. Caller ID

Problems (con’t)

InequityLess well-to-do individuals and businesses

are less likely to be able to afford servicesNewer technology often is used by those

with the most money

Problems (con’t)

Mediated realityVoice processing systems or computer-

mediated communication Increasing difficulty in reaching a live

personSystems are poorly used, often no option to

reach a live person

Problems (con’t)

Compulsory DisclosureUnless we block it, every call we make has

the potential of transmitting personal information including our name and telephone number

Some service do allow anonymous users such as Santa Monica’s Public Electronic Network (PEN)

Prospects

The telephone is one of the most successful communication technologies in history Personal Friendly Simple Reliable Universal Private

Designers need to worry as much about perceptions of the public as about the actual use of information in the network - James Katz

Prospects (con’t)

Future technologies like the picture or video phone may lead to more personal rather that computer-mediated communication

The industry and public sector lack any compelling and attractive social vision

Reference:

Dutton, W.H. (1992). The social impact of emerging telephone services. Telecommunications Policy. (eReserve)

Retrieved on July 7, 2009. https://eres.lib.washington.edu/eres/coursepage.aspx?cid=7479&page=docs