Making the Australian mobile in the 1990s: Creating markets, choosing technologies

In thinking about convergent media and new digital technologies, the place of mobile services and technologies in the broader media policy field has not been addressed satisfactorily. This article reviews the beginnings of cellular mobiles in Australia to see what this piece of history can tell us about today's policy challenges. My case study revolves around the technology choices made by the federal government in the 1980s, especially the decision to essentially mandate the second-generation Global Standard for Mobiles (GSM) digital standard. I examine the structuring of the mobiles market with three initial licence-holders, and look at the implications of this as mobiles developed through the 1990s. The article offers a brief comparison with the New Zealand mobiles market, and also the promising yet ultimately 'failed' technology of the public-access cordless telephone. I conclude with some observations about how such critical examination of history can help to open up policy vistas about mobile media.