Broadband users despise them, especially in a country where 5-10GB allowances are considered ‘generous.’ But the lack of competition for monopoly state-owned phone company Telkom also featured prominently. What were South Africans complaining about? Usage caps. It attracted more than 15,000 followers in just two weeks. Earlier this month, a Facebook group called Free the Web popped up asking consumers what improvements were needed in South Africa’s broadband service. MWEB hired marketing firm Quirk to generate buzz about the company’s unlimited service option. (Read this South African blogger’s experience with Neotel.) Neotel offers an unlimited service package, but it’s so confusing few customers can be certain what they’re getting.South Africa’s ‘Screamer’ offers a pricey unlimited plan at $54US per month for 384kbps service.Paying $65.50US per month nets you less than a 2GB usage allowance Using 3G wireless mobile alternatives are for the deep-pocketed only.Paying $39.50US per month buys you 10GB of usage from Afrihost.Telkom, South Africa’s state phone company, wants $35US monthly, five dollars more than MWEB’s lowest speed unlimited alternative, for its DSL service with a 3GB usage allowance.That’s because the competition charges far higher prices, often for limited service: The company does admit to throttling torrent services, but customers have managed to bypass the throttle by encrypting their torrent traffic.Īlthough these speeds and prices are terrible in comparison to North American broadband plans, for South Africans, MWEB’s announcement was big news. Customers willing to tolerate slower speeds can reduce their unlimited broadband bill considerably - 384kbps starts at $30 a month 512kbps is priced at $41 a month. The more competition there is, the better it is for the market,” said Jansen.įor $73.50US per month, MWEB offers 4Mbps DSL service that is truly unlimited, which is a radical notion in a country used to usage caps averaging 3GB per month. The other things that have to change are we have to get the mobile operators to offer wholesale data. There are still probably three or four big things that have to change in this market and for us, this is the first step. It’s a fantastic opportunity to change the Internet in South Africa,” MWEB CEO Rudi Jansen told News24.įor a country that has never known anything but expensive, slow, usage-capped Internet, MWEB’s announcement is nothing short of a broadband revolution for 49 million South Africans. South Africa doesn’t experience the Internet like the rest of the world does. “We realized there’s a major gap in the market. MWEB, one of South Africa’s largest residential broadband service providers, last week “threw down the gauntlet” and unveiled an unlimited broadband option among its various rate plans. South Africa is the latest country on the way to finally discarding Internet Overcharging schemes like usage caps and usage-based billing. Phillip Dampier MaBroadband Speed, Competition, Data Caps, MWEB (South Africa), Public Policy & Gov't, Video 5 Comments “I’m looking forward to it,” Jansen says. The Internet visionary wants to transform South African broadband away from its current expensive pricing model and throw the Internet wide open. Now the nation’s semi-privatized, 39% state-owned phone company Telkom is widely expected to stop the erosion of its own broadband customers by adopting flat rate broadband service itself.įor Jansen, that would represent a welcome move. “We are running ahead of our business plan and all our products are profitable,” Jansen tells TechCentral. Today, MWeb’s uncapped broadband is a runaway success, with more than 50 percent of its customers switching to the meter-free service. But MWeb president Rudi Jansen dismisses the notion limiting broadband is the way to go, suggesting usage caps and meters are more about profits than serving customers. The company’s move to unlimited, flat rate service was heavily criticized by competing providers, who enforce draconian usage limits and have tried to convince customers the global trend was moving towards metered broadband. South Africans won uncapped broadband service one year ago tomorrow when an upstart provider - MWeb - unveiled its “Free the Web” campaign, delivering usage-limit free Internet access to customers across South Africa. Phillip Dampier MaBroadband Speed, Competition, Consumer News, Data Caps, MWEB (South Africa), Net Neutrality, Wireless Broadband Comments Off on South Africa Celebrates One Year of Uncapped Broadband Tomorrow Rivals’ Money Party Ruined
0 kommentar(er)
