Broadband Shootout Questions: Your Feedback Needed

rpm

rpm

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Hi folks

We have been asked to submit ‘official questions’ for the ‘Broadband Shootout Conference’ (http://www.mybroadband.co.za/nephp/?m=show&id=592). These questions will be submitted to the five players. There will also be questions from the floor, and we will certainly be there to ask them :D

Can you please give your suggested questions to the five broadband players. A few will be sent to the conference organizers as official questions, and we will do our best to ask the rest from the floor.

Please give your question/s and say which operator it is aimed at.

Thanks and regards,

RPM
 
Telkom: What is the cost of a DSLAM port?

Telkom: Is a 512k DLSAM port more expensive than a 192k DSLAM port?

Telkom: Do copper lines require more maintenance as a result of data "speeding" along at 512k?

Telkom: So how DO you justify the huge disparity in line rental charges for differing speeds? Should that not be an ISP issue?

Everyone: Will all the operators please fill us in on your contention ratios? No? Why not - something to hide?

:D
 
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Why is the latency on broadband connections (ADSL) sometimes below international standards.

Local pings > 100ms and international pings > 400ms is not acceptable.
 
First of all: congrats! Not bad to be asked to submit official questions! :cool:

Then, the questions:

Telkom: What kind of ADSL equipment is installed in the exchanges? ADSL or ADSL2+?

Telkom: When can we expect VDSL to cater for customers with fiber between the exchange and the end-point?

Telkom: When are we going to see 1M, 2M, etc. speeds in South Africa, since the standard ADSL equipment can handle it?

Everyone: Who decides the shaping policies?

Will add when I think of more...
 
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rsd said:
Telkom: What is the cost of a DSLAM port?

Telkom: Is a 512k DLSAM port more expensive than a 192k DSLAM port?

Telkom: Do copper lines require more maintenance as a result of data "speeding" along at 512k?

Telkom: So how DO you justify the huge disparity in line rental charges for differing speeds? Should that not be an ISP issue?

Everyone: Will all the operators please fill us in on your contention ratios? No? Why not - something to hide?

:D
Click to expand...

Nasty rsd nasty. :D

These questions get my vote. :cool:
 
Topic = Product Specification

Do you think it's pertinent that the actual attributes of the connection being sold to the client are made visible to the client ?
e.g. 512KB/s connection shared with 200 other 512 KB/s connections, with a list of protocol priorities.

Which Attributes Should be Shown as part of the Package ?
- Line Up Speed, Line Down Speed.
- Maximum Local BandWidth Rate (64KB/s ... 512 KB/s)
- Maximum International BandWidth Rate (64KB/s ... 512 KB/s)
- Minimum Local BandWidth Rate (64KB/s ... 512 KB/s)
- Minimum International BandWidth Rate (64KB/s ... 512 KB/s)
- Local Contention Ratio.
- International Contention Ratio.
- Global Usage Statistics of another person on Existing Framework over a typical 7 day period.
- Cost of broadband incluiding all mandatory costs and vat.
- Support Availability.
- Minimum Uptime.
- List of International Landing Points.
- Maximum Local Latency to Cape-Town.
- Maximum Local Latency to Centurion.
- Maximum International Latency to United Kingdom.
- Maximum Local Latency to New York.

Do you think that the client should be allowed to expect that these attributes remain constant for the duration of the product's lifespan ?
e.g. A client signs up for a 512 KB connection with a 3GB cap for a 2 year contract, that actually remains a product of the exact same attributes for the entire duration of the contract.

What should be the naming convention for broadband products, so that any person can at a glance identify if one product is better than another on offer ?

Topic = Sales Tactics

[Teklomopolee]When using "Scale of economy" as a sales pitch, do you think it is acceptable to have a huge backlog of potential customers waiting for their slice of the pie ?

Is there a place for garauntee's as part of the sales pitch ?

Why bother to continue to advertise a product when you cannot keep up with the current demand for the product ?

Why do you not insist that the Acceptable Use Policy is signed by the customer ?

What is the minimal information that must be supplied to a user that signs up for a broadband service.
e.g. Login + Password, Support Contact Number, Hardware Wiring Instructions, TroubleShooting Guide, Glossary of Terms, General Guide to the Internet, ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY, How to Protect Your Computer, How to Protect Your Family ?

Topic = Abusers

Is it acceptable practice to punish everybody for the infringements of a few bandwidth abusers ?

What exactly is bandwidth abuse ?

Is bandwidth abuse a global phenomenon, and how do other countries cope with this abuse ?

What reward is there for the non-abusers ?

What punishement is in place for Abusers ?

No specific provider.
 
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The things I would like to know are:

1. Total subscribers and breakdown of package type being used.
2. Local loop capacity and maintenance costs for the ADSL portion.
3. Wholesale international bandwidth purchase price.
4. Cost to land that bandwidth locally per GByte.
5. Contention ratios
6. Technical details on the shaping policies in place.

These are mostly Telkom related but I think accurate answers on the above 6 would clarify many things which affect all players.

I would also like to know how each of the operators feels the convergence bill and any other imminent changes affect them, what they offer and the prices to consumers and how soon after the legislation passes the consumers will feel the effects.
 
All providers: Why do you give clients dynamic IP addresses? Why not provide static IPs at no extra charge?

Please challenge them if they give some bs answer about not having enough IPs... they obviously have to have one IP for every user who is online unless they're using NAT (and I doubt any of them are).

All providers: Do you think ICASA are doing a good job in their position as regulator? (Someone take a camera along please. Would love to see if the Telkom delegates flinch)
 
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How long does it take from application to installation and what are the bottlenecks?

Telkom: How many new ADSL technicians are in training?

Telkom: When can we expect no delays due to "no port available" type of excuses?

Telkom: When will fibre fed lines be able to get ADSL?
 
What is the cost of intenational bandwidth per Gigabyte.
Exclude network maintenance cost and other inabilities to serve clients.
What are the bare costs?
 
1)telkom: what has happened to the 1mbps speed that was promised first in june, then in august?

2)telkom: when will we see international trends of increased speeds and reduced prices? as opposed to reduced speeds as an excuse to offer lower prices.

3)telkom: are the rumors of per-gig billing true? if so why are the touted prices so exhorbitant?

4)telkom: aren't your recent ad campaigns against your policy of "abuse"? why should people who use adsl in the manner in which it was meant to be used be classified as abusers? surely broadband wasn't meant to be used only for http traffic and email use.

5) telkom: recently your spokesman blamed demographics and terrain on the inability to deliver on adsl rollout. why is it possible for countries such as new zealand and australia to provide fast rollout, high speed, lower prices when they are basically in the middle of nowhere? additionally, their terrain and demographics are very much similar to ours with deserts and mountains as well.

and NO 3G speeds cannot be classified as broadband as far as i'm concerned. its merely wireless access to internet content. and regarding abuse, reference should be made to the ICASA report which mentions acceptable uses of adsl. everything that is considered acceptable by definition, is considered abuse by telkom.
 
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"Why is the cost of broadband so high?"
"How do we solve this?"
If the economics of scale BS is replied then: "Do you not think that the current pricing structure is prohibitive for the uptake of broadband?"
 
4)telkom: aren't your recent ad campaigns against your policy of "abuse"? why should people who use adsl in the manner in which it was meant to be used be classified as abusers? surely broadband wasn't meant to be used only for http traffic and email use.
Click to expand...

This particular point bites my a@@ as well. Why can they advertise a (use for a ) product which they CLEARLY see as abuse of the product?

Much like a car manufacturer telling you that liquid N20 violates your warranty, and then showing an ad where the car goes at 300km/h with N20 in the tank!
 
either that, or it's their way of admitting that they were wrong to classify it as abuse in the first place. in which case, port shaping should be lifted and bandwidth prices should be significantly lower
 
If things get boring during the ahem 'shoot out' - please ask the experts:

"What great opponent of Cartesian dualism, resists the reduction of
psychological phenomena to a physical state, and insists there is no
point of contact between the extended, and the un-extended?"

I'm sorry, it's friday. But it IS a question that needs to be asked at people who
have the nerve to appear in public and pretend to have all the answers..

*creeps away quietly*
 
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With the questions on this thread, I predict the 'shoot-out' will be more of a 'massacre'... :D

Then again, there's probably going to be some 'rule' regarding the questions that prevent Telkom from answering any of the above... :(
 
Thats fine - I'd settle for a video of Telkom representatives saying "no comment" to 20 questions in a row. :D At least it would be a good laugh
 
TELKOM:

Why are there ONLY 1.7 million internet users in South Africa? (Statistic from INTUG)

Why is broadband targeted only for a niche group?

Are any of you broadband players following the SUCCESSFUL business models of other countries? Especially as outlined by institutions like INTUG which members actively involved in telecoms from countries around the world?

When can we expect the local loop to be unbundled?

Do you listen to institutions like INTUG who follow global trends, markets and business models?
 
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Telkom: Why do you fsuk the consumer all the time? :D

Answer: "Well, yes we have been expanding in this area for a long time with our broadband market.

Sorry, what did you say again?" :D
 
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