MPHPT draws up “Asia Broadband Program”

(2003.3.31)

The Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications (“MPHPT”) has drawn up a plan called the “Asia Broadband Program” to prepare the environment for broadband in Asia. This program is based on the “e-Japan Priority Policy Program 2002” and the “Basic Policies for Economic and Fiscal Policy Management and Structural Reform 2002” that were decided in June 2002. From now on, the MPHPT and the relevant authorities, together with the governments, private companies, NPOs and international organizations in Asia, will actively become involved in developing this program.

The “Asia Broadband Program” will analyze the current status of broadband in Asia, such as the existence of a digital divide between countries or regions with high penetration rates and those with less than 1% rate, and the significantly low volume of information flow between Asian countries compared to Europe or North America. In implementing broadband special attention must be paid to diversity in Asia, and the program should proceed under the leadership of private entities and governments should assist them.

The objectives of the “Asia Broadband Program” are as follows: 1) to enable everyone in Asia to use broadband environment by the year 2010, 2) to build an infrastructure that is a world leader, such as IPv6 or next generation mobile communication , 3) to archive the Asian cultural heritage and enable it to be dispatched anywhere in the world, 4) to realize a practical machine translation technology of the major Asian languages.