Only a small part of all people can afford the most advanced technologies available, most notably in third world countries and non-profit organizations relying on donations.
This is especially important for Communication in Remote Areas - if you don't have a lot of money and more than about 100 kilometers to the next phone line, you can't cover the distance with a cable, so wireless technologies have to fill the gap. The final mile technologies of industrial countries like GSM wireless phones on UHF-frequencies also won't cover that distance, so shortwave or satellite radio communications have to come in.
The MISSION COMPUTER-RELATED RESOURCE DIRECTORY lists many places where to find more information, especially for missionaries.
The Network Startup Resource Center provides lots of information of what has already been done - a good place to find out how to get email to country X.
An organisation making use of satellites in really remote areas is SatelLife, serving mainly the medical community.
Volunteers in Technical Assistance bring people with time & knowledge in contact with organisations in need of experts - not only for communications, but also for drilling wells etc. They also manage electronic conferences about relevant topics, together with the world bank.
I wrote a more extended collection of information about communication in remote areas.
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