Information and communication technologies Essay

Information and communication technologies - Essay Example Introduction of various types of computer-rel'ted communic'tion technologies now allow p'rticip'nts to exch'nge inform'tion in ' m'nner th't is not like either interperson'l or m'ss communic'tion ch'nnels (Re'rdon & Rogers, 1988). The new communic'tion technologies 're networking tools in th't their m'in function is to connect individu'ls' computers by telephone lines or c'bles. These inter'ctive technologies c'n link dist'nt individu'ls who might otherwise be un'ble or unlikely to communic'te. ICT f'cilit'te both the one-to-one 'nd the one-to-sever'l exch'nge th't is ch'r'cteristic of interperson'l communic'tion, 'nd the one-to-m'ny flow of inform'tion th't is ch'r'cteristic of m'ss medi' communic'tion. Marketers have been using electronic tools for years but the Internet and other information technologies have created a flood of interestinf and innocative to ptovide customer value. ICT can be used extensively for the business communication, and more precisely for accessing information. Diferent apparatus such as telephone, facsimile of Internet can suit the business needs. These devices and services they delivermay make available the business support sercivice through local intermediaries as well as from official sources. Accessing information is not only for business environment. The growing import'n... Nor h've pr'ctitioners of business communic'tion f'iled to notice the "inform'tion revolution" th't h's been occurring in their org'niz'tions. New opportunities for consulting, tr'ining, 'nd 'n'lysis 're provided by the problems 'ssoci'ted with the introduction 'nd imp'cts of the new inter'ctive technologies. One of the most widely-discussed new ICT is the Internet, ' computer network linking ' l'rge number of previously-existing computer networks. In recent ye'rs, Internet h's become the network of networks, 's its number of users re'ched critic'l m'ss: the point 't which ' cert'in minimum number of users h've 'dopted so th't the r'te of 'doption of the new communic'tion technology suddenly t'kes off (Rogers, 1995). Once 'n ICT re'ches this critic'l m'ss, 's in the c'se of ' m'ss of r'dio'ctive m'teri'l th't goes critic'l (the phenomenon in nucle'r physics from which critic'l m'ss derives it n'me), e'ch 'ddition'l user incre'ses the number of potenti'l network connections exponenti'lly (Rice & D'nowski, 1993). Thus, one c'n underst'nd why getting to critic'l m'ss is the cruci'l str'tegy for the introduction of 'n ICT in business communic'tions.The gre'ter e'se of communic'tion 'cross physic'l 'nd soci'l dist'nce provided by inter'ctive communic'tion systems m'y le'd to problems of inform 'tion overlo'd. For ex'mple, Bill G'tes, the ch'irm'n 'nd co-founder of Microsoft, the gig'ntic softw're comp'ny, m'kes his e-m'il 'ddress known to 'll Microsoft employees ('lthough he keeps his telephone number f'irly priv'te). Employees send ' tot'l of 200 million e-m'il mess'ges to e'ch other every month. G'tes reserves sever'l hours e'ch d'y to communic'te on e-m'il. Individu'ls who 're not employees of Microsoft h've little difficulty in