Global Communications

We live in a world that has a number of alternate communications infrastructures in place, many of which are global in nature.  While the Internet is the most pervasive and recent of all global communications solutions, other older systems such as international mail and telephony have also played a huge role in bringing the world together.  The very nature of global communication is one of the driving factors behind globalisation, and as the technology that drives these changes gets smaller and more efficient - international communication gets easier and faster.

The path from traditional postage to global wireless connectivity has been long, however recent developments have shown that it is exponential in nature.  With traditional paper based postage, it takes a long time for a message to get through to its destination, and this was the way that international communication happened for a long time.  This situation evolved when the first ever telegraphy and telephony systems were developed and put to use.  The introduction of the telephone (apart from being of vital importance in its own right) also led to developments in what was to become the biggest international communications infrastructure the world has ever seen - the Internet.

The Internet is a global network of interconnected computers, which is also becoming integrated into mobile phones, digital assistants and mobile gaming devices.  The Internet is a vital part of the communications solution for many individuals and business enterprises, as it allows for practically instantaneous and inexpensive communication all over the world.  Internet infrastructure began on standard telephony wires, although today it is more likely to be accessed via dedicated cables, satellites and wireless networks.

The growth of wireless communication networks for mobile phones and the Internet is the latest evolutionary step in global communications, with WiFi, mobile broadband Internet, and cellular phones now common place in modern industrialised society.  With so many developments happening so fast around the technology that surrounds international communications, it is hard to predict exactly what will occur in the future.  However, current trends are leading us towards a faster, smaller and more wireless communications future.