I have been very busy with my job, but now is excellent example of e-campaign could be the best excuse for not posting for so long. Soon after elections, Azerbaijan’s National Television and Radio Council (NTRC), announced, that foreign radio stations, which has own FM (broadcasts only in Baku!) will be taken out of this frequencies. This doesn’t mean their closing. Of course this started mass campaign against this decision. This time outcome from society is more, than from officials.

BBG and BBC have special statement, but that is only official side of activities. New media is using very largely. Internet groups getting mails and people sharing ideas on how to stop this decision, how to influence to NTRC.  Number of Facebook users, which joined supporters of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty increased 500 in this weekend. And when USA votes and everybody looking for the result Azerbaijani blogosphere writes about this 3 radio channels. Now there is some hope – head of NTRC said, that they could give license for one more year to this stations. But it will be the last time. Date of decision is the middle of December. Till then we will see boost in this direction. When some changes in real media happens, new media is quick to respond. I have found one comment, that the next will be Internet But this area is very different. See here:

Prices for İnternet (surprisingly) went down and I have seen a big changes for Uninet (private) and Aztelecom (state-owned) companies. There are more, than 40 Internet providers in Azerbaijan. All companies want to have good face just before the biggest IT, Communication and in some ways new media exhibition.

Also one consulting company taking blog professional to teach companies how to use new media for business. That’s real and incredible change in Azerbaijan. If businessmen will listen carefully and understand why they need us (new media people) it will help to develop and increase potentials of society to influence in many ways. So diversification is what we are taking to communities.

The last news is developing of new very cheap computer project for Azerbaijan with sponsorship from Intel and Microsoft. This will take place presumably next year.

The latest new is different and has connection with the first paragraph. Today I have got information, that AzerSat-Delta Telecom (which is monopolist) had a problems and could not deliver quality Internet to providers. All Azerbaijan suffered for some tens of minutes. Monopolization is what any market economy should fight and use new media as a tool for this.