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Broadband Bullfight Hots Up
By Toby Shapshak, Sat Dec 10th

b>Competition is (slowly) bringing down bandwidth costs inSouth Africa

Recently South African cyberspace was given an area code(O87), the country's first report on wireless broadbandofferings was released and the cheapest asymmetric digitalsubscriber line (ADSL) connection was announced. The suffix 087was allocated for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) numbers bythe Independent Communications Authority of South Africa(Icasa), effectively allowing calls routed through the Internetto connect with the traditional tele-coms infrastructure.

It would allow users to dial a 087 number much like a cellphonenumber and connect to someone who also uses a VoIP systeminstead of Telkom or a cellular network. The call would berouted through a data system, but be answered using a normaltelephone or computer, depending on how it is set up by theservice provider.

However, like most other telecoms issues, it is alreadycontentious, with one service provider, Storm, saying Telkombelieves it is illegal for Storm to provide voice services andto interconnect with it. Telkom spokesperson Lulu Let-lapeexplains, "According to Section 14 of the TelecommunicationsAct, value-added network services (Vans) providers are notpermitted to carry voice until the communications ministergazettes a change. According to Telkom, that hasn't changed,that Act still stands".

Ironically, the 087 number range was used for thenotorious value-added lines 11 years ago which featured mostlysex chatlines. It is common knowledge that Telkom suffered hugelosses when subscribers refused to pay or operators defraudedthem by skipping payment.

"Telkom lost a lot of money in the past; could lose a lot ofmoney in the future," says Storm's business development directorDavid Gale. He went on to say that Internet service providers(ISP) and other telecoms providers could form their owninterconnect arrangement, and added that the upcomingConvergence Bill would make a challenge to Telkom unnecessary.There is an effort to lessen the cost of bringing bandwidth intothe country even as more complaints emerge about the price oftelecoms in South Africa.

Globally, the much-publicised purchase of Internet callingservice Skype by eBay for about $4-billion was concluded;while BSkyB, the United Kingdom's largest pay-television groupwas revealed to be interested in entering the broadband marketby acquiring ISP Easynet and offering so-called triple-playservices, combining voice calls, broadband Internet access andpaid-for television.

Meanwhile, M-Web, which is the largest

consumer ISP, announcedthe lowest monthly ADSL package, but one has to useTelkom's entry level 192kps connection and M-Web's monthly fee,which is the same cost as a normal dial-up.

Broadband access and cost has grown into arguably the mostcontentious issue after Telkom's call prices and the need toallow access to the "local loop". This is the so-called 'lastmile" that connects subscribers to the exchange. The largestportion of the monthly cost is a second rental fee Telkomcharges for the ADSL line. Icasa slammed these fees as"exorbitant" after hearings earlier this year into the cost ofTelkom's broadband access; following a complaint by theMyADSL.co.za website. The website has emerged as one of Telkom'sgreatest critics as it is a forum for broadband users, many ofwhom are disgruntled about the service that Telkom is offering.

While most criticism has been about the cost of doing businessand how it retards the country's economic growth the NGO,Sangonet pointed out that it hindered development goals too.

"The high cost of access limits the use of the Internet as acivil society tool and stunts the growth of a culture to usetechnology as an information tool," Sangonet deputydirector Fazila Farouk told ITWeb. She told the informationtechnology website that the 'about' 100 000 civil-societyorganisations in South Africa - most of which are communitybased - could use the Internet as a tool for fund-raising,advocacy and working with other constituencies to shareinformation and coordinate development priorities, but cannot doso effectively on dial-up.

Meanwhile, the first wireless broadband report, released byJohannesburg University's department of business informationtechnology and the MyADSL website, found that Sentech'sMyWireless was the best on offer. Comparing price, speed,reliability, and support through lab and user testing, thereport was a comparative analysis of the wireless alternativesto Telkom's ADSL. MyWireless scored 87%; Vodacom's 3G camesecond with 81%; WBS's iBurst third with 80%; and MTN's 3G waslast with 78%. Ironically, MyWireless has received the worstpublicity and there have been complaints of bad service and poorspeeds.

About the author:You've probably already heard that VoIP could cut a substantialchunk off your company's monthly telecoms bill, and that thereis more than one provider that offers the service. Both thesefacts are true. Storm makes it so easy for you to implement VoIPthat you'll barely realise it's happened until your vastlyreduced phone bill arrives.

Make Free Internet Phone Calls With Voip And Save A Ton Of Money By Sandra Clair, Sat Dec 10th Have you heard all the buzz about VoIP?Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is an emerging technologywhich allows you to make telephone calls over the Internet -many times for free. It is Read more...

The Uk Finally Embracing Voip By Michael Brito VoIP in the UK has started to take off just as it has all over the world. It is an amazing break through technology and is changing the face of telephone communications. According to a study Read more...

Net Telephone Services In Trouble - 911 Fcc Rules Upheld By Richard A. Chapo, Sat Dec 10th Net telephone service providers are facing a huge problem. Acourt has upheld FCC regulations requiring the voice overinternet protocol providers to provide 911 services.911 RulesAs Read more...

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