Picking Technologies the more subsidies are received – hence the competi-tive incentive. Northern Sky Research suggests that In the recently published Guidelines for the use of US stimulus funds, 39 the US Government explicitly endorsed technology-neutrality, on the basis that the State should not pick technological winners and losers – “the standards chosen are technologically-neutral the ultimate goal is that service providers commit to supplying a metropolitan-equivalent service, and that rural subscribers should pay roughly the same, as if they were metropolitan subscribers. Some commentators believe that stimulus plans in some countries emphasize wireline infrastructure at the expense of wireless. Ericsson notes that govern-ments and appropriate for the widest range of appli-cations, because the defi nition of reasonable network management may differ based on the technology used and other dimensions of the project”. 40 are supporting the roll-out of FTTx, which may or may not be appropriate in a future where broadband connections will be mostly mobile. Fibre delivers far greater bandwidth (greater by a multiple of around ten than the nearest, most advanced wire-less In Australia also, the Broadband Guarantee Program has deliberately avoided picking technologies and seeks to channel state funds into leveling the playing fi eld for all service providers and not into any specifi c technology choice. To “un-tilt” the playing fi eld, the Australian Government will give a subsidy per subscriber to whichever provider. For satellite serv-ices, technology), but High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) and Long Term Evolution (LTE) have proved cost-effective ways to connect rural areas with high bandwidth, multi-megabit data connec-tions, the research consultancy Northern Sky Research building off and extending the reach of the notes that this could mean subsidizing equipment and installation costs, as well as the subscription. Northern Sky Research concludes that the important point is that subsidies are linked to signing up sub-scribers, national fi bre backbone to underserved areas. Network investments are nearly always front-loaded, with high initial outlays. Mobile deployments require lower initial outlays than fi xed networks (especially for upgrades to existing networks or where infra- and not to the costs of service provision.41 The greater the number of subscribers signing up, 42 Confronting the Crisis: ICT Stimulus Plans for Economic Growth