Trends in telecommunication

Telecommunication is the exchange of information in any form (voice, data, text, image, audio, and video) over computer based.

Telecommunications enable a business that operates from different locations to run as a single unit. This means that the same information and control structures do not need to be repeated at each company office. Instead, information can be managed centrally and control maintained from a central location. As well as improving internal communications in a company, telecommunications also allow companies to collaborate using electronic data interchange or web-based e-procurement with partners such as suppliers. Similarly, customers can transact with the company using the Internet.

Computer's internet is the major representative of telecommunication.

The earliest computers used magnetic tape or magnetic drum as their secondary memory. They were expensive by using a great deal of electricity and generated a lot of heat which was often the cause of malfunctions. They also could only solve one problem at a time. Output was displayed on printouts, and input was based on punched cards and paper tape.

For more improvement, magnetic ferrite core memories ware used as main memory while magnetic disks and magnetic tapes were used as secondary memory. The separate input-output processors ware developed that could operate in parallel with CPU. During this period, punched cards were continuing used. They were increasingly used in industry, business and commercial organization.

In the 1960s, computer became smaller and better performance and also faster processors. Magnetic core memories were replaced by semiconductor memories (RAM & ROM). Computer interfaced with an operating system software were introduced which were efficient sharing of a computer system by several user programs. During this period, database management, multi-users application, online systems (airline reservation, automatic industrial control, etc) were emerged.

In 1971, CPU was introduced as complete processors and large section of main memory. Second memory was composed of hard disks, for example, floppy disks and magnetic tape were use for backup memory. Small computers became more powerful that they could linked together to form networks, which led to the development of the Internet.

Nowadays, for the progressive of computer, portable notebooks and new operating system (window 98/XP/Vista) were generally introduced. Those computers were available on artificial intelligence and use extensive parallel processing, multiple pipelines and multiple processors. Large main memory and disk storage were available for the storage technology.

In the earliest, internet access was not popular enough. It was also expensive for having the internet access, the connection was bad and slow. That's why there was not popular in that time. In the 1990s, the World Wide Web was introduced and became the most popular way to access other Internet sites. Communication occurs over cables, satellites or fiber optics. But, most of the user may use a modem or telephone lines to access the network. Toward extensive use of Internet, digital fiber optic, and wireless technologies to create high speed local and global internetworks for voice, data, images, audio, and video communication. World Wide Web was popularity used. Most of the company will use internet to communicate with their customer by sending email, or even a webcam services which is a face to face communication through internet. They can communicate not only with local customers but global customers. It is convenient and low cost for using internet.

There are two basic type of network. There are Local Area Network (LAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN). LAN is designed to connect personal computers and other digital devices within half miles. Users can share data or files by using LAN as if the data or files resided on their respective computers. WAN consist of nodes that are interconnected by links and covers a large geographic area (usually on the order of hundreds of miles).

Discussion on the business value of telecommunications networks to the company.

Telecommunication is declining transaction cost. It becomes less and less expensive to purchase, sell and bargain in both digital and traditional markets as networking becomes less expensive and more powerful. It also is declining agency cost that the costs of managing falls are able to monitor the performance of employees and marketers remotely over networks. For using the telecommunication, it has increased agility. Managers and firms can respond more rapidly to changing business environment conditions. Telecommunication can help the decision of management higher in quality. Managers are more likely to make the right decisions based on correct and timely information.

The internet uses a system of telecommunications protocols that has become so widely used that it is now accepted as network architecture. The Internet's protocol suite is called Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol and is known as TCP/IP. TCP/IP is used by the Internet and by all intranets and extranets. Many companies and other organizations are thus converting their client/server and wide area networks to TCP/IP technology, which are now commonly call IP network.

One of the newest uses foe Internet protocol (IP) is Internet telephony- the practice of using an Internet connection to pass voice data using IP instead of using the standard public switched telephone network. Often referred to as voice over IP or VOIP, this approach makes use of a packet-based (or switched) network to carry voice calls, instead of the traditional circuit-switched network. In simpler terms, VoIP allows a person to function as if he or she were directly connected to a regular telephone network even while at home or in a remote office. As well, it skips standard long distance charges and avoiding the tolls charged by traditional telephone services, because the only connection is through an ISP. VOIP is being used more and more to keep corporate telephone costs down, as you can simply run two network cables to a desk instead of separate network and data cables. VOIP runs right over a standard network infrastructure, but it also demands a very well-configured network to run smoothly.

The Europe paper manufacturer-Canal can use Skype as the communication tools to communicate within a long distance calls. Skype is the example of the VOIP. It is the software that provides features like voice mail, instant messaging, call forwarding, and conference calling. Skype users are not billed according to the distance between the two countries. Instead, the users are charged according to the prosperity of the country, the volume of calls made to and from the country, and the access charged.

Suggest specific areas of the operations that could benefit from the investment in telecommunications networks.

Telecommunications enable a business that operates from different location to run as a single unit. This means that the same information and control structures do not need to be repeated at each company office. Instead, information can be managed centrally and control maintained from a central location.

The European paper manufacturer-Canal, decide to expand its business in Asian. For their communication between Europe and Asia, telecommunication network has become an important character.

They needs telecommunication network to communicate with the Asian's branches. It is possible for the global company to operate 2 hours a day by taking advantage of people working in different time zones. If someone working on a product design in Europe, for example, they can dispatch it for review in Europe at the end of their working day. The review can then be conducted in Europe while the other team members are asleep and still be ready for review the next morning. Using this simple method product designs could be accelerated significantly. Customer service queries can also be turned around more quickly through the use of telecommunications.

Telecommunications also can help Canal in reducing the cost. As before, if information has to be sent to another location, the cost of sending is very low compared to using a letter or even a fax. If face-to-face communication is needed to exchange information or solve problem, telecommunications now make this convenient. Add on, meetings can be conducted by conferencing, which not only includes video conferencing, but also sharing ideas through writing on whiteboards or running shared software. Money is saved, and the time it takes for people to travel to the meeting is also saved.

Besides that, telecommunication networks enable them for sharing and dissemination information. Opportunities to share information are lost when it is locked in a filing cabinet or stored on an individual's PC. By placing information on a server, either as a file or within a database, it can be made accessible to all departments that need it or flow of information in the company is improved. This has proved to be one of the big benefits of intranets. As Canal, it selling through agents worldwide can provide information such as prices or technical specifications over an internet. This information is always up to date, as there is no delay while prices lists are reproduced and transported to the agents. Of course, this approach also helps in reducing costs.

An obvious benefit of setting up a network is that it enables the cost of equipment such as printers, faxes, modems or scanners to be shared between members of a workgroup. Printers are the most obvious item that can be shared within a business. Workgroup printers may be shared between small teams of three or four or up to twenty or so people, but a more powerful printer would be required in the latter case. Other administrative tasks are also made easier by centralizing more complex equipment.

Telecommunication network also can help Canal to promote the new ways of working. As well as the tangible benefits, introducing networks can facilitate a different approach to running a business. Setting up an internal network makes it possible to use group-working tools. Setting up a wide area network makes electronic data interchange with suppliers possible.

Wide area communications technology is now popularity in every company. Through using wide area communications technology, it is possible to rationalize the operations of a company that originally operated as separate business units in different geographic locations, perhaps with their own working practices, producers and reporting mechanisms. Linked business units can use common ways of working facilitated by video conferencing as shown in the case study. Sharing of information on best practices can also occur.

Recently, the world is offering more from wireless communication technologies than ever before as more people around the world are subscribing to wireless. Add in Third-Generation (3G) wireless data services and applications, for examples, web, digital picture taking/sending, wireless email, assisted-GPS position location applications, video and audio streaming and TV broadcasting.

By using the CDMA technology, Canal can provide a convenient communication between branch and head office. CDMA typically provides better capacity for voice and data communications than other commercial mobile technologies, allowing more subscribers to connect at any given time, and it is the common platform on which 3G technologies are built.

CDMA is allowing many users to occupy the same time and frequency allocations in a given band/space. It assigns unique codes to each communication to differentiate it from others in the same spectrum. In a world of finite spectrum resources, CDMA enables many more people to share the airwaves at the same time than do alternative technologies.


  1. Webmaster (2009), "Study Materials on Computer Organization" accessed from
  2. Manoranjan (2009) "What are the five generation of computer how are they classified?" accessed from
  3. Webmaster (2009) "Local Area Network" accessed from
  4. Webmaster (2009) "Wide Area Network"
  5. James A. O'Brian (2003), "Introduction to information Systems-Essentials for the e-Business Enterprise", 11th Edition, McGraw-Hill, North America.
  6. Kenneth C. Laudon and Jane P. Laudon (2006), "Management Information systems, Managing The Digital Firm, 9th Edition", Pearson International Edition, New Jersey.
  7. Paul Bocij, Dave Chaffey, Andrew Greasley and Simon Hickie (2006), "Business Information Systems, Technology, Development & Management for the e-Business, 3rd Edition", Pretice Hall, UK
  8. James A. O'Brien and George M. Marakas (2008), "Introduction to Information Systems, 4th Edition", McGraw-Hill, US.
  9. Webmaster (2009), "CDMA Technology" accessed from
  10. Susan Ward (2009), " VOIP" accessed from
