STAATSKOERANT, 24 JANUARIE 2014 No. 37261 fastest way to get a document across the world was to fax or telex; to conduct research you needed to read a printed book or use microfiche. Cables connected your computer to your printer, you watched TV in real-time and recorded programmes on your VHS or Beta recorder. With the entry of broadband in the past 10 years, the ICT landscape has changed dramatically and the internet is now a major medium of communication. The SA population has grown from 37.8 million to 52 million between 1993 and 2011 and in that time the number of households increased by 4.6 million to 14.5 million. Per capita income has risen from R11 000 to R64 000 in the same period. Mobile technology, broadband, digital television, smartphones, the cloud, tablets, and new media technology are all recent developments in the market. These changes have farreaching implications for any new policies and legislation:, Best practice in the fast moving technological revolution is to do regular policy reviews, ideally at least every five years to make sure that the objectives outlined in the policy are being implemented, and also to look at gaps and challenges as a result of the introduction of new technologies. 2.5 Changing ICT environment 2.5.1 Technology Convergence Convergence relates to the tendency of technological systems to develop in a manner that allows them to perform multiple tasks with one device. It also means that a single infrastructure can provide a multiplicity of content or services; that a single service-provider can provide multiple services, or that content can be aired on multiple platforms. There is also corporate convergence, which means that one company can provide several of the above services. In this context it refers to the process in which previously separate technologies such as telephony, data and video can now be saved, transmitted and received using the same devices. The net effect of this technological trend is to reduce the cost of construction of the transmission networks as one transmission system can be used for many services. Technology convergence is of particular interest to policy makers and regulators as it changes the nature of services, allowing an operator who was licensed under one category to be able to do things that would have required different category licences in the past. 2.5.2 Platforms, Applications and Services are converging Three major technological developments influencethe communications landscape in a radical manner. The first is the shift to Internet Protocol (IP) - based technologies that have affected the cost of networks, at the same time offering opportunities for innovation and new services. Examples of these are Voice Over Internet Protocol, which has been in existence for about a decade, and internet broadcasting. The second is the deployment of fibre-optic technologies that have increased the speed and size of data that can be transmitted from one point to the other. The third development is the entrance and use of wireless technologies. 11 This gazette is also available free online at www.gpwonline.co.za 15