LIRNEasia regularly surveys SEC group D and E (the bottom of the pyramid) teleuse in emerging Asian countries. In the study it was found that less than one percent of the Sri Lankan BOP phone users who are aware of mobile 2.0 services regularly use it. Highlighting this fact we ran an advertisement in the Daily Mirror today.
The advertisement’s objective was to show what the policy makers and regulators can do and thereby what the service providers could do to boost up Mobile 2.0 services in Sri Lanka. The advertisement also indicated, that with these changes it can lead to a App-Store model where it can act as a platform (application store) for mobile content providers to add their applications, with standard contracts from telcos.
Mobile 2.0 at Bottom of the pyramid is project conducted by LIRNEasia. For more details click here
More info about Teleuse@BOP (Survey on SEC D and E) click here
The advertisement ran today in the Daily Mirror Business section
5 Comments
venura9
Well that has a lot to do with the comparatively higher charging for data via mobile devices. even if there are ways still the users are not aware of them and about the voice beyond services that they can get. Poor marketing strategies of the operators has a strong say in this.
Alison Gillwald
Fantastic initiative to give research policy relevance, well done, Alison Gillwald, South Africa.
Mobile
If someone takes a photo with a mobile phone cam, does it come under Mobile 2.0 or does it becomes Mobile 2.0 only when it is sent to someone through MMS?
Chanuka Wattegama
@Mobile,
It is common to have other electronic devices like radios, cameras, clocks bundled with mobile handsets. Whether they are part of the handset or an added component is a tricky question. So far we have treated mobile cameras separately. But perhaps in future, if mobile handsets replace non-professional cameras we may have to consider it as part of mobile 2.0.
LIRNEasia CEO Helani Galpaya at UNDP conference on New Ways of Governing
LIRNEasia CEO Helani Galpaya attended UNDP’s New Ways of Governing Conference in Oslo on 28–29 October 2025, contributing to discussions on AI and data governance. Her session drew on LIRNEasia’s research on data-governance policies across Asia and the organisation’s ongoing work on responsible AI.
LIRNEasia Insights on Disaster Management: The Resilience of ICT Infrastructure During Disasters
Natural disasters and humanitarian crises often create disorder and panic. While basic needs such as food, clean water, and shelter often take priority, access to accurate information helps calm societal turbulence.
LIRNEasia Research Fellow Ashwini Natesan at Media Forward 2025
Media Forward 2025 was held from 24–26 November 2025 in Colombo, organised by UNDP Sri Lanka in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Broadcasters’ Guild, Hashtag Generation, Factum, Verité Media and Politics, the Media Law Forum, the Free Media Movement, and the Sri Lanka Digital Journalists’ Association. LIRNEasia Research Fellow Ashwini Natesan joined as a panelist for the first session of the event, titled ‘Strengthening Coordination and Shared Accountability in Digital Spaces’.
Links
User Login
Themes
Social
Twitter
Facebook
RSS Feed
Contact
9A 1/1, Balcombe Place
Colombo 08
Sri Lanka
+94 (0)11 267 1160
+94 (0)11 267 5212
info [at] lirneasia [dot] net
Copyright © 2025 LIRNEasia
a regional ICT policy and regulation think tank active across the Asia Pacific