Yeaah!! I know there are a few people who have that reaction in relation to the launch of the fibre optic ACE cable which happened yesterday in Freetown. This is great not only it will greatly ease the frustrations of those who have needed it for so long, but it will also create a wealth of internet driven solutions and opportunities. We can also watch those fantastic internet clips on youtube. There have been studies which indicate that there is some link between high bandwidth and poverty reduction. We surely hope that can be replicated in Sierra Leone.
Hopefully, after the technical side has been implemented we can enjoy the second promise of fibre optic technology which is the reduction of cost of bandwidth. We hope that there will be competition among the providers which will offer the best for consumers and force prices down. My fear however, based on talking to a few people who are involved in the business in some way is that we will not see any significant fall in prices.
An announcement today that Airtel will be cutting the cost of the bandwidth by 50% sounds like good news. But it's a bit like having a salary increase. When your salary increases so does your expenditure. In other words we will be using the internet more now that it's quicker. We will open those attachments and watch those video clips. So, with the Airtel "pay for bandwidth" model, you'll still end up paying more because you're downloading more. If they're serious about reducing the price, they should reduce the cost of their unlimited plan but this has stayed the same.
Nevertheless, we will watch this space and await communication from the other ISPs.
Hopefully, after the technical side has been implemented we can enjoy the second promise of fibre optic technology which is the reduction of cost of bandwidth. We hope that there will be competition among the providers which will offer the best for consumers and force prices down. My fear however, based on talking to a few people who are involved in the business in some way is that we will not see any significant fall in prices.
An announcement today that Airtel will be cutting the cost of the bandwidth by 50% sounds like good news. But it's a bit like having a salary increase. When your salary increases so does your expenditure. In other words we will be using the internet more now that it's quicker. We will open those attachments and watch those video clips. So, with the Airtel "pay for bandwidth" model, you'll still end up paying more because you're downloading more. If they're serious about reducing the price, they should reduce the cost of their unlimited plan but this has stayed the same.
Nevertheless, we will watch this space and await communication from the other ISPs.
3 comments:
Yes, broadband is a good thing.
Good article and wisely articulated. I have been using myself the services of Sierratel for the past 3 years. Before the advent of the fibre optics I was having a maximum download speed of around 16kb/sec (128kbits/sec) which only peaked at night around midnight. During the day it was mostly useless. However I am now able to download around 32kb/sec(256kbits/sec) which is diminutive and disappointing when potential/essence of the fibre optics is to great enhance the speed even to a meagre 1MBits connection that will enable youtube and other video sharing sites to play without buffering. I am not committed to any political/governmental parties so I wouldn't know whether there is a chance of a potential increase in speed. There are myriads of video lectures online that are waiting to be downloaded to help students get quality education !!
Good article and wisely articulated. I have been using myself the services of Sierratel for the past 3 years. Before the advent of the fibre optics I was having a maximum download speed of around 16kb/sec (128kbits/sec) which only peaked at night around midnight. During the day it was mostly useless. However I am now able to download around 32kb/sec(256kbits/sec) which is diminutive and disappointing when potential/essence of the fibre optics is to great enhance the speed even to a meagre 1MBits connection that will enable youtube and other video sharing sites to play without buffering. I am not committed to any political/governmental parties so I wouldn't know whether there is a chance of a potential increase in speed. There are myriads of video lectures online that are waiting to be downloaded to help students get quality education !!
Post a Comment