The rest of the world has been playing catch-up. But there s no guarantee this will continue to be the case. The very nature of this revolution is to integrate, to globalize, to spread progress and vision in all directions, paying no heed to national boundaries, at worst temporarily restrained by constraints of class and culture. Sure, this phenomenal boundaryless spreading is intrinsic to the technology. It s all about networks networks of computers, creating and enhancing networks of people.
Networks spread information like nothing else.
But just as this fabulous technology is all being developed by human programmers exercising human creativity, so the spread of technology throughout nations is being carried out by human businesspeople, applying tremendous skill, inventiveness and intercultural savvy to the difficult but rewarding task of remaking the world. For a combination of technical and sociological reasons, technologies develop differently in different parts of the world. Cell phones spread through Europe much faster than through America, but the Net has developed far more furiously in the US than anywhere. Africa has lagged behind due to a lack of money, and basic infrastructure. He was 28 years old, he d started the company only five years before, and by the time of Star TV s sale to Rupert Murdoch s News Corp., its five channels we being seen in 50 million households in 38 countries.