Rural folk to miss out on cheap high speed Internet
|
6 August 2009 |
| |
Majority of Kenya’s Internet service providers have no capacity to supply downstream consumers with fibre optic bandwidth, leaving room for a few players, who may use the advantage to keep prices high.
It has emerged that only six ISPs – mainly the big telecoms firms – have the right of use with the TEAMs cable or have bought capacity at Seacom.
They are Telkom Kenya, Kenya Data Networks, Safaricom, Jamii Telecoms, AccessKenya, Essar Telecoms and Wananchi Group.
Connecting consumers to the fibre optic platform requires an elaborate terrestrial network that only a few companies have the ability to build and run profitably.
Wait longer
To date, only Telkom Kenya, Kenya Data Networks and Safaricom have invested in national terrestrial network and supporting platforms that can be used to offer the last mile connection countrywide.
This means that millions of Kenyans, who have been waiting for better Internet speeds a...
|
| |
Recent International News Articles |
End of 2011 results show Verizon lost almost half a million DSL customers during last year, while AT&T managed to lose more than six hundred thousand in the last quarter alone - but those customers aren't turning away from the internet they're just switching to a more 21st-century form of connectivity. So AT&T lost 636,000 DSL customers in the last three months of 2011, but picked up 587,000 for its U-Verse service which used fibre for the majority of the connection, if not all of it. Those missing 50,000... |
Virgin Media is planning to whip its broadband into a wild gallop in a 110m upgrade that will produce a top speed of 120Mbps. The company won't be charging its existing customers for the new speeds, and folks who have an old modem incapable of handling the super-fast internet Ö such as those on the 20Mbps package will get a new one free. The smokin' hot broadband speeds were enough to prompt praise from UK prime minister David Cameron, who reckons the upgrade will boost the economy. One of the government... |
Cable operators delivered the fastest average broadband download speeds in 2011 -- with major MSOs easily blasting by rival telco and satellite Internet services -- according to data from independent testing firm Ookla. For the full year, the six fastest residential Internet service providers in the U.S. based on average download speed were Comcast, Charter Communications, Cablevision Systems, Time Warner Cable and Insight Communications. That's according to Ookla's Net Index service, which has measured h... |
The European Commission (EC) has launched a new action plan that seeks to double the volume of e-Commerce in Europe by 2015, which will apparently require "serious broadband bandwidth" to deliver. The new plan, which forms a part of the wider Digital Agenda and Single Market Act, proposes 16 targeted initiatives that could see online trade and services eventually account for more than 20 percent of growth and net job creation in "some" Member States. Thankfully that includes the UK, as well as Germany,... |
Giving customers instant and reliable access to the internet is now a "basic essential" for Highland businesses, an award-winning island restaurant owner has said. Shirley Spear, who runs The Three Chimneys on Skye with her husband Eddie, also said social network sites had helped to boost trade. The couple are among businesses and individuals in the north exploiting communication technology. But the Spears and others have also been frustrated by poor connectivity.
Broadband speeds and mobile coverage in... |
Logistical problems have delayed work on the fibre optic cable linking Harare and Beit Bridge through Bulawayo to the undersea cable in South Africa, a report on Zimbabwe's The Herald Online said. It was supposed to be completed in December 2011. When complete, the fibre optic cable, whose installation commenced in May last year, is expected to bolster service provision by state-owned telecommunications companies NetOne and TelOne. "Our contractor ran into a number of logistical problems that hindered... |
Berlin's mayor threw his weight on Thursday behind plans for free wireless Internet service in central districts of the German capital, saying it was an economic necessity. "We will strengthen broadband and work to introduce a free-of-charge Wifi network since infrastructure policy for a capital city in the digital age also means ensuring speedy Internet access," Klaus Wowereit told the city-state parliament. "The economy needs it and it is our social responsibility to prevent a digital divide," the Social... |
Approximately 17.4 million broadband lines were deployed during Q3 2011, bringing the global total to 581.3 million, a quarterly increase of 3.08 percent - and an annual growth rate of 12.89 percent, according to figures prepared for the Broadband Forum by Point Topic. The quarter witnessed the strongest growth since 2009, thanks largely to continued rollouts in China. "These are very healthy figures for Q3 and they demonstrate the ongoing strength of the broadband market," commented Robin Mersh, CEO of the... |
BSkyB has launched a 100 Gigabit optical network for Sky Broadband customers, the first optical network to hit that speed in the UK. The network is aimed at allowing customers to rapidly download large files, including high definition videos. BSkyB is aggressively improving its technology capabilities. Yesterday it announced a multimillion pound purchase of a stake in Zeebox, in a bid to be at the centre of customer searches to buy products seen on television. The Sky Broadband unit, which has over three... |
Mobile operator O2 is to provide free internet to "millions" of residents and visitors in central London by launching Europe's largest free wi-fi zone. The service will be rolled out across the boroughs of Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea in 2012. It will be powered by a system installed on street furniture. O2 said the deal, which will have no cost to the taxpayer, will enable visitors to "make the most of what London has to offer". Councillor Philippa Roe, cabinet member for strategic finance... |
