By Sam Vaknin
Author of "Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited"
Though the countries in transition are far from being an homogeneous
lot, there are a few denominators common to their Internet
experience hitherto:
1. Internet Invasion
The penetration of the Internet in the countries in transition
varies from country to country - but is still very low even by
European standards, not to mention by American ones. This has to do
with the lack of infrastructure, the prohibitive cost of services,
an extortionist pricing structure, computer illiteracy and luddism
(computer phobia).
Societies in the countries in transition are inert (and most of
them, conservative or traditionalist) - following years of central
mis-planning. The Internet (and computers) are perceived by many as
threatening - mainly because they are part of a technological
upheaval which makes people redundant.
2. The Rumour Mill
All manner of instant messaging - mainly the earlier versions of
IRC - played an important role in enhancing social cohesion and
exchanging uncensored information. As in other parts of the world -
the Internet was first used to communicate: IRC, MIRC e-mail and e- mail fora, and SMS (short messages services on mobile phone and
other portable devices) were - and to a large extent, are - all the
rage.
The IRC was (and is) used mainly to exchange political views and
news and to engage in inter-personal interactions. The media in
countries in transition is notoriously unreliable. Decades of
official indoctrination and propaganda left people reading between
(real or imaginary) lines. Rumours and gossip always substituted for
news and the Internet was well suited to become a prime channel of
dissemination of conspiracy theories, malicious libel, hearsay and
eyewitness accounts.
Instant messaging services also led to an increase in the number
(though not necessarily in the quality) of interactions between the
users - from dating to the provision of services, the Internet was
enthusiastically adopted by a generation of alienated youth,
isolated from the world by official doctrine and from each other by
paranoia fostered by the political regime.
The Internet exposed its users to the west, to other models of
existence where trust and collaboration play a major role. It
increase the quantity of interaction between them. It fostered a
sense of identity and community. The Internet is not ubiquitous in
the countries in transition and, therefore, its impact is very
limited. It had no discernible effect on how governments work in
this region. Even in the USA it is just starting to effect political
processes and be integrated in them (for instance, through blogs).
The Internet encouraged entrepreneurship and aspirations of social
mobility. Very much like mobile telephony - which allowed the
countries in transition to skip massive investments in outdated
technologies - the Internet was perceived to be a shortcut to
prosperity. Its decentralized channels of distribution, global
penetration, "rags to riches" ethos and dizzying rate of innovation - attracted the young and creative.
Many decided to become software developers and establish a local
version of "Silicon Valley" or the flourishing software industry in
India. Anti virus software was developed in Russia, web design
services in former Yugoslavia, e-media in the Czech Republic and so
on. But this is the reserve of a minuscule part of society. E- commerce, for instance, is a long way off (though m-commerce might
appear sooner in countries like the Czech Republic or the Baltic).
E-commerce is the natural culmination of a process. You need to have
a rich computer infrastructure, a functioning telecommunications
network, cheap access to the Internet, computer literacy, inability
to postpone gratification, a philosophy of consumerism and, finally,
a modicum of trust between the players in the economy.
The countries in transition lack all of the above. Most of them are
not even aware that the Internet exists and what it can do for them.
Penetration rates, number of computers per household, number of
phone lines per household, the reliability of the telecommunications
infrastructure and the number of Internet users at home (and at
work)- are all dismally low.
On the other hand, the cost of accessing the net is still
prohibitively high. It would be a wild exaggeration to call the
budding Internet enterprises in the countries in transition - "industries". There are isolated cases of success, that's all. They
sprang in response to local demand, expanded internationally on rare
occasions and, on the whole remained pretty confined to their
locale. There was no agreement between countries and entrepreneurs
who will develop what. It was purely haphazard.
3. The Great Equalizer
Very early on, the denizens of the countries in transition have
caught on to the "great equalizer" effects of the Net. They used it
to vent their frustrations and aggression, to conduct cyber-warfare,
to unleash an explosion of visual creativity and to engage in
deconstructive discourse.
By great equalizer - I meant equalizer with the rich, developed
countries. See the article I quoted above. The citizens of the
countries in transition are frustrated by their inability to catch
up with the affluence and prosperity of the West. They feel
inferior, neglected, looked down upon, dictated to and, in general,
put down.
The Internet is perceived as something which can restore the
balance. Only, of course, it cannot. It is still a rich people's
medium. Former US President, Bill Clinton, pointed out the Digital
Divide within America - such a divide exists to a much larger extent
and with more venomous effects between the developed and developing
world. the Internet has done nothing to bridge this gap - on the
contrary: It enhanced the productivity and economic growth (this is
known as "The New Economy") of rich countries (mainly the States)
and left the have-nots in the dust.
4. Intellectual Property
The concept of intellectual property - foreign to the global
Internet culture to start with - became an emblem of Western
hegemony and monopolistic practices. Violating copyright, software
piracy and hacking became both status symbols and a political
declaration of sorts. But the rapid dissemination of programs and
information (for instance, illicit copies of reference works) served
to level the playing field.
Piracy is quite prevalent in the countries in transition. The
countries in transition are the second capital of piracy (after
Asia). Software, films, even books - are copied and distributed
quite freely and openly. There are street vendors who deal in the
counterfeit products - but most of it is sold through stores and
OEMs.
I think that intellectual property will go the way the
pharmaceutical industry did: Instead of fighting windmills - owners
and distributors of intellectual property will join the trend. They
are likely to team up with sponsors which will subsidize the price
of intellectual property in order to make it affordable to the
denizens of poor countries. Such sponsors could be either multi- lateral institutions (such as the World Bank) - or charities and
donors.
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AUTHOR BIO (must be included with the article)
Sam Vaknin ( http://samvak.tripod.com ) is the author of Malignant
Self Love - Narcissism Revisited and After the Rain - How the West
Lost the East. He served as a columnist for Central Europe Review,
PopMatters, Bellaonline, and eBookWeb, a United Press International
(UPI) Senior Business Correspondent, and the editor of mental health
and Central East Europe categories in The Open Directory and
Suite101.
Until recently, he served as the Economic Advisor to the Government
of Macedonia.
Visit Sam's Web site at http://samvak.tripod.com