miércoles, junio 21, 2006

Water Without Price Controls

Water without price controls is a paradigm to complement electricity without price controls. The value added by retailers which have economies of scope may lead to a turn around of the two services, whereby the development of the bottom of the economic pyramid will help the domican society get closer and faster to a develop economy. This is what DR1 reports today:

Large numbers without potable water About 1.5 million Dominicans are not provided with potable drinking water. This situation is a serious challenge for the authorities committed to fulfilling the United Nations Millennium Goals by 2015. The report comes from a study given to the Economic Committee for Latin America (ECLAC) and that contains the Dominican intentions vis a vis these objectives. The report says it will cost about US$31.62 to provide each and every citizen with potable water over the next ten years. Total spending of US$3.111 billion will be required to fulfill this aim. Part of the problem is the rapid urban sprawl that is far outreaching the ability of the country's water suppliers such as Caasd, Corasan, Coramoca and others, to provide a good service. According to the largest of the municipal aqueducts, CAASD, which covers Santo Domingo, they are providing water to 93.8% of urban residents and 72.6% of the province's rural inhabitants.

Is Now the Time to Dump Microsoft and Fire Your IT Manager?

Fast Company Now blog has published the dilemma of going to Web 2.0 or dumping both Microsoft and your IT Manager. The GMH believes that there is a third alternative that needs to be considered in the dialogue: services without price controls to end users.

This is what I submitted to the Fast Company blog:

The end of the game on Web 2.0 vs MS is related to net neutrality and true
electricity deregulation. The net and electricity services will shift from
either/or to multiple options as John Naisbitt envisioned in Megatrends. 100%
service availability is not possible. 3-nines (99.9%), 4-nines (99.99%) and so
on service availability will fill the multiple options customers will elect to
maximize the value added from the services. A third alternative might arrive
where those services are offered without price controls on a business as usual
wholesale, retail, customer value chain. Small and medium size businesses will
purchase the insurance they need to decide to purchase central or distributed
services.