Hello, ITU Newsletter readers!

As the United Nations General Assembly heats up this week in New York, including discussion on how information and communication technologies (ICTs) can boost progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), here are your top ICT trends and insights: The UN Broadband Commission discusses the digital divide, Indonesia to pursue Google for back taxes, and Cisco's IoT pivot highlights the tech industry's broader digital transformation.

Spotlight

The UN Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development met in New York this week on the eve of the 71st session of the UN General Assembly to discuss the urgent need to address the digital divide. The Commission issued its flagship annual report, The State of Broadband 2016 just last week. [See a quick video guide to the report here.]

ICT Trends

Self-driving cars see progress... Uber expands self-driving car plans days after piloting a self-driving car service. (This comes weeks after nuTonomy launched the world's first self-driving taxi trial in Singapore, where Uber rival Grab just raised USD 750 million amid increasing competition in Asia.)

... but face hurdles A new study shows safety concerns have dampened enthusiasm for self-driving cars. Meanwhile, new government guidelines mean autonomous cars in the United States must meet 15 benchmarks.

Digital Finance: Naspers's PayU buys India's Citrus Pay for USD 130M to expand in India. It's one of the largest cash fintech acquisitions in India to date. [Learn more about the foundation of India's new digital payments system.]

Apply now for the ITU Telecom World Awards, recognizing and rewarding the best ICT innovations with social impact. We provide international visibility, UN recognition, networking, knowledge-exchange and investment opportunities to help you realize your potential, faster. Applications close on 26 September!

Regulation: Indonesia reportedly plans to pursue Google for five years of back taxes. The move comes days after the European Commission concluded that Ireland had 'granted undue tax benefits of up to 13 billion euros' to Apple.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT...

Infrastructure: Guyana abandons Brazil fibre in favour of satellite links.
Blockchain: IBM has signed a deal with Japan's largest bank to automate business transactions using blockchain technology.
IoT/Smart Cities: Deutsche Bahn picks Nokia to operate communications network for Berlin's suburban rail system.
Regulation: Belarus enforces new regulation of VOIP. How might this impact OTT players?

Insights

Cisco's IoT pivot highlights the tech industry's broader digital transformation to meet rapidly changing service provider and enterprise needs.

Keep up to date with ITU

UPCOMING EVENTS

- ITU Telecom World 2016; Bangkok, Thailand, 14-17 November 2016

- The World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly; Yasmine Hammamet, Tunisia, 25 October to 3 November 2016

- New videos! On ITU’s YouTube channel

- Read the latest ITU News Magazine here

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