Mediatek’s Amikam Yalokevsky will bring attendees up to date on cutting edge technologies like 4.5G, EdgeAI, and Narrowband IoT.

With just over a month to go, the Digital Transformation Andes Summit, held at the Habitel Hotel & Convention Center in Bogotá near the El Dorado International Airport has announced exciting new speakers relevant to executives charged with making key strategy and IT decisions in their enterprises.

Amikam Yalokevsky from global technology giant Mediatek will be visiting from the US to present several discussions on Edge AI, or how artificial intelligence in the end device, whether smartphone, tablet, laptop or IoT device, can enable new capabilities in the enterprise. With Edge AI, computation is not limited to constant connectivity to the enterprise network.

José Otero, 5G Americas’ Vice President of Latin America And The Caribbean.

Yalokevsky will also be speaking on narrowband IoT which allows remote devices like smoke detectors or telemetry to communicate; something valuable for industries like agriculture, mining, and petroleum.  Also, Yalokevsky will present on 4.5G technologies.

Many have heard about 5G technology, and Digital Transformation Andes’ own keynote speaker, José Otero from 5G Americas will discuss the game changer that 5G will be for The Americas. However, 5G isn’t here yet. Yalokevsky will speak about the bridge technologies such as 4.5G that are close at hand and will provide clear and present short to mid-term benefits for corporate networks and consumers alike.

Frank Casale, Founder of the Outsourcing Institute and IRPA-AI (Photo credit: Loren Moss)

Frank Casale, Founder of both the Institute for Robotics Process Automation and Artificial Intelligence, and the Outsourcing Institute will also visit from the US to speak to the plenary session on the digital landscape in 2020.

The IAOP’s (International Association of Outsourcing Professionals) Mauricio Velazquez will discuss the formation of a regional IAOP chapter, with the support of Colombia’s outsourcing trade association BprO, formerly ACDECC, who successfully concluded their own annual industry event.

“We are excited about our lineup of speakers,” said Finance Colombia’s Loren Moss. “A lot of events end up having more vendors than executives or attendees. We want to provide a lot of value for those in attendance, where they leave with valuable takeaways, not just a bunch of sales pitches. We want to provide real value and equip regional companies with the tools and knowledge they need to make wise decisions when it comes to modernization and digital transformation of their enterprises.

Unisys’ world renowned security expert Dr. Carlos Castañeda

Also presenting are security expert Dr. Carlos Castañeda from Unisys, discussing securing the enterprise during and after the migration to the cloud. Esteban Carril of international management consulting firm Chazey Partners will join the event from Brasil to

Chazey Partners’ Esteban Carril

discuss the role of shared services in growing companies as they move from national firms to “multilatinas” or true global enterprises.

Interested sponsors may inquire by contacting Finance Colombia using the contact form here.   More information on the event is available at the event website, Digital Transformation Andes 2019. Team discounts are available for companies that wish to send multiple colleagues. Student discounts for unemployed full-time students are also available.

Habitel offers generous hotel discounts and a special rate only available by reserving at the hotel website here, and using the discount code digital2019

Avianca is offering special discounts for summit attendees using the code GN412 who book on the airline’s website here.

Together, the countries — Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Venezuela — would add 1,556 MHz if they meet their goals. The organization notes, however, the final amount to be assigned will depend on the tenders and other documents in the corresponding processes as determined by the competent authorities.

The jump, if fully realized, would be enormous, says 5G Americas, a non-profit organization of service providers and manufacturers in the telecom industry. The current volume of radio-electric spectrum assigned to mobile services in these countries — mostly on 700 MHz and 2.5 GHz bands with some on 1700/2100 GHz bands — currently adds up to 2,721 MHz. So this addition would be boosting the potential capacity by 57% in the availability of frequencies for mobile services.

(Graphic courtesy of 5G Americas)

The current average spectrum assigned per Latin American country is only 339 MHz. Currently, only Colombia and Costa Rica are above that regional average. But the announced plans could also bring Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Venezuela above that number.

“The news of the upcoming processes to assign radio-electric spectrum frequencies in Latin America reflects a greater awareness on the part of governments in the region of the importance that mobile services have in boosting connectivity as a means of improving people’s lives,” said Jose Otero, director for Latin America and the Caribbean of 5G Americas. “It shows a greater interest in fostering development of an infrastructure that allows for better services, which definitely results in connected communities with a better quality of services.”

5G Americas points out, however, that the new assignments won’t mean much unless they are able to put to use right away. “It is important to mention that these benefits will only be had if the spectrum that is given to the operators can be immediately used to commercialize mobile services,” said Otero. “Otherwise, the impact on its development would be negligible until it can be used.”

As that inevitable future approaches, today it is somewhat more difficult to go online if you happen to be in the vast majority of the rural areas on the planet. How many schools have Internet available? Or electricity, for that matter? How about computers?

All of these questions have been a matter of concern for governments for quite a few years. At the turn of the past century, they gave rise to the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) Project aimed at empowering every student with a laptop to bridge the Internet access gap between the richest and poorest segments in any given country.

As with every great proposal, OLPC has not escaped controversy. There has been much criticism, ranging from claims that computers are not as cheap as it was once believed (because the lowest price point is only achieved by placing large orders) to accusations that the devices are simply ugly.

Other criticism targeted towards the project’s management or the extravagance of some of its proposals, such as dropping the computers from a helicopter in remote areas with few access routes.

Aside from the controversy that may surround this organization, what is important about OLPC is the notion that became firmly established in the sense that it is possible to hand a computer to every child in their school years in any given country.  From my perspective, this is the most important legacy we have received from this organization.

Oddly enough, until little more than ten years ago, there were a large number of skeptics about the feasibility of OLPC. This perception has gradually changed either by virtue of technological breakthroughs enabling the distribution of tablets instead of laptops, slashing costs in the process, improvements in wireless technologies or the emergence of successful models worth replicating.

One such model is, undoubtedly the Plan Ceibal in Uruguay, which has delivered a laptop– called ceibalita– to every student in the country aimed at eliminating the Internet access gap in the South American country. Plan Ceibal has been so successful that experts from Armenia, Colombia, Dominica, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay and Rwanda, among other countries, have looked into the project with a view to emulating its positive outcomes.

I think that one major achievement of Plan Ceibal has been the fact that the distribution of computers to the schools was not meant to be the end of connectivity but rather the beginning.  Subsequent announcements of ongoing deliveries or the inclusion of new educational software receive less media coverage than in other regions.

Part of the project’s success is the sustained monitoring of the impact on students and the establishment of an on-going support network to provide infrastructure maintenance, device repairs and coordinated software updates on the devices.

As an example, a study from the Scientific Research Sector Committee from the University of the Republic in Uruguay found that the delivery of ceibalitas had a positive impact on the children’s performance. In turn, research conducted by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has found that the reduction of the digital divide between the students attending public schools and those attending private schools is mostly due to Plan Ceibal.

This data is not negligible when you consider the existence of numerous studies that minimize the impact of OLPC programs, such as one conducted by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in more than 300 rural schools in Peru, which concluded that access to computers did not improve students’ academic test scores.

An article in Colombia’s Semana magazine reached the same conclusion by showing a correlation between the results from a comparative study on education among Colombian students and the use of technology:

“One growing concern is how technology is being used. In the Pisa test, Colombia scored worst on reading material on the Internet. Colombian children now have computers at home and at school, and yet they fail to read critically. They lack searching skills. A huge effort has been made to provide technology, but these thousands of tablets are not enabled with appropriate content, neither are teachers being trained on how to use these new tools. Computers are used for chatting and playing, and the paradox is that the children who use them most are the ones getting the lowest scores. Redressing this state of affairs may have a significant impact.”  

On the other hand, the conclusion of a recent study published in the academic publication Computers in Human Behavior indicated that the sustained use of technological devices by children may have adverse consequences on the development of their interpersonal communication skills. For this reason, during the educational process, the use of the device should be guided in such a way as to encourage interaction among students.

These results are not too different from the IDB recommendations stating that computer delivery should be accompanied by specialized educational programs that serve as teacher support tools. Obviously, if students are to benefit from the technology, this should be furthered by teacher training processes and the deployment of the necessary infrastructure. If the Internet connection is not fast enough, it is impossible for 20 or 30 computers to browse the web simultaneously.

It is clear that for OLPC initiatives to be successful, the work has to go beyond the mere handing of PCs to include a focus on the on-going monitoring of its impact and the promotion of the use of educational software to supplement the teachers’ job. At the end of the day, one should never overlook the importance of the human factor.

The preceding article is a guest contribution by an industry thought leader on a topic relevant to Colombia and other countries. The contributor is solely responsible for its content. Opinions do not necessarily reflect those of Finance Colombia, it’s editors, or staff.

Finance Colombia was able to discuss this market growth, especially as it relates to Colombia’s vibrant and at times, contentious domestic wireless mobile telecommunications market, with José Otero, 4G Americas’ Director of Latin America And The Caribbean.

José Otero, 4G Americas’ Director of Latin America And The Caribbean.

Finance Colombia: Latin America’s adoption of LTE has really grown, from 2 million connections in 2013 to 12 million in 2014. What kind of growth should we expect over the next 3 years?

José Otero: The period from 2011 to 2014 could be described as the first phase of LTE deployments in Latin America. During these four years, LTE deployments were characterized by their limited geographic coverage (main exception being Brasil) and low number of operators offering the service in the same market.

The spectrum allocation processes that took place at the end of 2014 in Argentina and Venezuela paved the way for LTE to enter a second phase in its evolution. Starting in 2015 the main characteristic of LTE in Latin America and the Caribbean will be geographic coverage expansion and accelerated subscriber growth. LTE will surpass the 100 million subscriber mark in the region before the end of 2018.

Finance Colombia: What can you tell me about growth of 4G LTE in Colombia specifically?

 José Otero: Colombia is one of Latin America’s LTE leaders. The growth of this technology in the country will only accelerate in the coming years. According to data from Pyramid Research, by 2019 Colombia will have more than 12 million LTE subscribers with Smartphones capable of LTE, surpassing in sales those capable only of HSPA+ services.

Finance Colombia: Do we know the mix between prepaid and invoiced subscribers?

José Otero: The numbers won’t vary much from what we currently have in the market. Since contracts are no longer valid in Colombia, we’re seeing operators trying to retain their invoiced subscribers with better offers and services.

Finance Colombia: What differences in usability, beyond higher speeds, will users experience as they migrate from HSPA to LTE devices and services?

José Otero: It will depend on the location and how many channels are dedicated to HSPA+. But, initially Smartphones capable of working with LTE will tend to be more sophisticated than previous devices as the technology main advantage is to allow customers to interact with an increasing number of applications and services that require high connectivity rates. The interface will be mostly dictated by the device’s operating system with Android, iOS and Windows being representing the vast majority of handsets.

LTE is the first mobile technology that will provide users similar and sometimes greater speeds than their wired counterparts

Finance Colombia: In Colombia and most other CALA countries, we still have a significant portion of the population living on modest incomes. How relevant and accessible is LTE to that market segment? Is it still just a luxury service, or are there devices and service plans that are accessible to the mass market?

LTE Infographic 4G Americas

José Otero: Colombia has adopted measures to accelerate the adoption rate of new technology. From no taxation on mobile devices to the free delivery of tablets in low income areas, people from strata 1 and 2 now have more opportunities to access mobile broadband technologies. As time passes by and LTE gets better economies of scale, its adoption rate among the lowest income segments of the population will increase.

Finance Colombia: Beyond mobile phones, how else is LTE adoption changing the way that people interact with friends, and media sources in Colombia and other LatAm countries?

José Otero:  LTE is the first mobile technology that will provide users similar and sometimes greater speeds than their wired counterparts. This is a change in the traditional paradigm where mobile connections only complemented wired connections.

Finance Colombia: Any specific insight, observations or comments related to Colombia in particular?

José Otero: As mentioned before, speeds offered by LTE will in many instances be superior to those offered by wired alternatives. This is especially true in rural and suburban areas where DSL or Cable Modem speeds are below 10 Mbps. Thus the launch of LTE will force wired broadband providers to improve their service to remain competitive before the mobile alternative and not risk suffering from the fixed to mobile substitution that occurred in the voice market.

4G Americas maintains a current list of LTE deployments in the Americas on its website.  For more information and to view a variety of statistical charts on the 3GPP family of technologies, visit www.4gamericas.org. Subscriber and forecast data is from Ovum. The infographic is courtesy of 4G Americas.