The reality is that telecommunications is necessary but not sufficient for economic development. There is a need for infrastructure other than telecom. And there is a need to consider labor skills and costs, as well as the costs of land and facilities. The reality is that rural areas may very well mirror urban areas in the variety of demand for telecommunications services. Such services can range from basic voice telephony to Internet access.
Rural demand is limited.
The reality is that demand generally exceeds forecasts, based on population density or per capita income. Noteworthy is that in some areas, the number of television sets exceeds the number of telephones. The reality is that rural customers require voice, data, and multimedia applications. Non-voice telephony requires broadband channels. The reality is that in rural areas, single circuits can handle fax, e-mail, data, still video, and simple videoconferencing services.