The South African Broadband Forum kicked off in Johannesburg this morning, aiming to facilitate affordable broadband and ICT access to local consumers.
The aims of the SA Broadband Forum include maximizing the rollout of fibre and wireless broadband infrastructure, stimulate the provision of local content, enhance e-government and e-citizenship, stimulate the adoption and use of advanced broadband connections and the implementation of a national broadband strategy.
According to Natasha Primo from the SA Broadband Forum the country is on the brink of major changes, which may include far more affordable broadband access. Primo said that broadband should be made a national priority in South Africa to enhance the economy and create an information based society.
Broadband Infrastructure
According to Arthur Goldstuck, director at World Wide Worx, South Africa has just over 1 million unique broadband users, many of whom use more than one broadband service for purposes of mobility and redundancy. This number is expected to increase significantly over the next two years, partly due to positive developments in the broadband and telecoms space,
Goldstuck said that the good news for South Africans is that there are many undersea cables in the pipeline, promising to provide the country with much more affordable international bandwidth. SEACOM will be the first to become operational in June this year, and Goldstuck pointed out that the cable will actually reach the Mtunzini next week.
There are also numerous other projects to provide national and inner-city infrastructure, which includes initiatives by Telkom, Neotel, Vodacom, MTN and Dark Fibre Africa.
Drivers of growth
Goldstuck said that there were four main drivers of broadband growth, including:
- Undersea cables, which will cause a revolution in access and capacity;
- New licences, which will mean that smaller companies can more easily become significant players in the telecoms space;
- Small and medium enterprises which embrace broadband, connecting their staff to the Internet through broadband access; and
- Cellphone connectivity, which will be a driver for broadband access through cellular networks.
Goldstuck warned, however, that cellphone-based broadband access will not be as significant as the media hype suggests.
The South African Broadband Forum will conclude at the end of today, after which a broadband strategy will be finalised and presented to government.
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Quelle/Source: MyBroadband, 24.03.2009
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