In this collection of essays, renowned authors from various disciplines have drawn on supply chain analysis and industry studies to elucidate how NICT — new information and communications technologies — like mobile telephony and the Internet have been affecting low-income communities and small entrepreneurs from Bangladesh to South Africa. The general conclusion is sobering. NICT is no panacea for low productivity and profitability in emerging countries hampered by weak infrastructure, limited managerial expertise, poor quality control, and severe market distortions. Companies anywhere must nonetheless be "wired" to have any chance of competing in the global marketplace and perhaps reach hitherto inaccessible customers.