iBurst facing uphill battle

Says Van Zyl: "We are living in exciting times and iBurst is extremely well positioned to capatilize on all the activities happening in the market right now. From the deregulation to the current drive to lower mobile termination rates, iBurst is at the right place at the right time."
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I agree. No more battle. I see just growth ahead.
 
iBust has a nice ring 2 it :) Their billing system is of the worst in the world. (k, I'm sure there r a lot worst) I'm still waiting for my iBurst cancellation that I did 3 months ago 2 take effect, will have to go put a stop order on my account so they stop taking my money on my canceled account.

Previous iBurst accounts I canceled because of non payment from my clients were not canceled for months after and because the clients continued to use the units iBurst refused because the units were in use. Never mind I requested that they b cut off months earlier :-/

So personally I will never touch anything from iBurst again.
 
It's always simply been a matter of time before iBurst ran into real trouble. It's inconceivable that the current business could generate sufficient returns even to pay off the network, particularly given their poor track record on multiple fronts. All of their competitors have substantial non-broadband revenue streams with which they can cross-subsidise services, or at least reach economies of scale on infrastructure.

iBurst's future as an independent business was in doubt from the day they decided to build out a network based on a niche technology with a limited future roadmap. For Vodacom today, the solution is obvious - shut down the iBurst network, and take over the subscriber base - they've taken over much larger numbers from some of their own SPs in the past. The economies of scale from the 3G technologies (W-CDMA, CDMA2000) are many orders of magnitude higher, and create an impossible situation for a player with limited ability to introduce new products.

Market consolidation is inevitable in this market, whether we find it palatable or not. Rumours of financial problems may even help Vodacom to justify taking the final steps.
 
alt21 said:
iBust has a nice ring 2 it :) Their billing system is of the worst in the world. (k, I'm sure there r a lot worst) I'm still waiting for my iBurst cancellation that I did 3 months ago 2 take effect, will have to go put a stop order on my account so they stop taking my money on my canceled account.

Previous iBurst accounts I canceled because of non payment from my clients were not canceled for months after and because the clients continued to use the units iBurst refused because the units were in use. Never mind I requested that they b cut off months earlier :-/

So personally I will never touch anything from iBurst again.
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So, they are fixing things. Even I would sing telkom's praises when they drop prices one day.
Better billing, customer service and network performance

Van Zyl expects the first phase of the new ERP and CRM systems to be rolled out within 6 weeks after which “customers will start seeing the benefits of the new system.”

iBurst has also initiated a customer quality measurement program to “get a proper feel for how customers experience the network”.

“This will be used as a base to ensure customer service levels are at the expected levels, especially with regards to network performance,” said Van Zyl. “MyBroadband forum members can send their test results to Shaun Green in the iBurst sub-forum.” http://mybroadband.co.za/news/Broadband/8608.html
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ads said:
It's always simply been a matter of time before iBurst ran into real trouble. It's inconceivable that the current business could generate sufficient returns even to pay off the network, particularly given their poor track record on multiple fronts. All of their competitors have substantial non-broadband revenue streams with which they can cross-subsidise services, or at least reach economies of scale on infrastructure.

iBurst's future as an independent business was in doubt from the day they decided to build out a network based on a niche technology with a limited future roadmap. For Vodacom today, the solution is obvious - shut down the iBurst network, and take over the subscriber base - they've taken over much larger numbers from some of their own SPs in the past. The economies of scale from the 3G technologies (W-CDMA, CDMA2000) are many orders of magnitude higher, and create an impossible situation for a player with limited ability to introduce new products.

Market consolidation is inevitable in this market, whether we find it palatable or not. Rumours of financial problems may even help Vodacom to justify taking the final steps.
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It's revenue from infrastructure already there.
The iBurst network

According to Van Zyl iBurst is one of the very few network operators who fully own and operate its own network.

The iBurst wireless network consists of more than 250 towers countrywide serving around 80,000 subscribers. These towers are interconnected via carrier-grade microwave rings (for redundancy) and the same microwave backhaul network is also used to provide backhaul services to around 300 business clients.

“The microwave rings in Gauteng are, in turn, interconnected via a fibre ring. Plans are underway to roll out similar fiber rings in the other major centers. We can also provide fibre services directly to our customers,” said Van Zyl.

iBurst is approaching completion of phase 1 of its mobile WiMax network which will be a similar size as the iBurst Wireless network, making it the largest WiMax network in South Africa. “This network is now going into production and is already serving around 100 customers, both on broadband and assured services,” said Van Zyl.

“We expect the uptake of the WiMax services to accelerate rapidly as we bring all the towers online and marketing and sales kick in. CPE availability was a bit scarce in the past but this is now resolved.”

“We also have our own satellite capabilities (using our own spectrum) and are serving a number of customers via this medium. International connectivity is via third parties and Seacom will become part of this mix.”

The new iBurst CEO says that iBurst is a fully fledged network operator and uniquely positioned in South Africa to play in the new, liberalized telecoms space.

“We're not the size of the big boys, but we have a more complete offering and much better agility. On the other hand we are not one of the hundreds of new startups, and are already well established with a market share of just under 10%. This positioning will be fully utilised to drive the strategy going forward,” Van Zyl said. http://mybroadband.co.za/news/Broadband/8608.html
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ads said:
For Vodacom today, the solution is obvious - shut down the iBurst network, and take over the subscriber base - they've taken over much larger numbers from some of their own SPs in the past. The economies of scale from the 3G technologies (W-CDMA, CDMA2000) are many orders of magnitude higher, and create an impossible situation for a player with limited ability to introduce new products.
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Unfortunately it is not that easy – what will happen with the WiMax network? Vodacom needs iBurst/WBS for that network in which they have invested millions. iBurst therefore has to remain operational, and I think the company may be well positioned to target the SME market and make the most of its existing network infrastructure.

iBurst will however need to penetrate the voice market as well as you suggested: We are actually using the iBurst voice service, and it is certainly a good service. (We are actually using Neotel, iBurst, Telkom W-CDMA and GTS services, and the quality of most services are typically quite good. ).
 
rpm said:
Unfortunately it is not that easy – what will happen with the WiMax network? Vodacom needs iBurst/WBS for that network in which they have invested millions. iBurst therefore has to remain operational, and I think the company may be well positioned to target the SME market and make the most of its existing network infrastructure.

iBurst will however need to penetrate the voice market as well as you suggested: We are actually using the iBurst voice service, and it is certainly a good service. (We are actually using Neotel, iBurst, Telkom W-CDMA and GTS services, and the quality of most services are typically quite good. ).
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You're just a slut for bandwidth! :)

People tend to forget that iBurst have 3 complete networks on which to build services; the iBurst and WiMax networks, both with ~260 towers in the metro areas and the MetroNet network, currently at around 700 nodes making it one of the biggest microwave networks in the country and most likely the only pure microwave backhaul network (we don't use Telkom). Actually 4 networks if you include our satellite network (we have our own earth stations).

So there is much more to iBurst than the consumer base but clearly the consumer base is extremely critical and very dear to us. After all they 'made' iBurst.

As to voice, again few people know that iBurst runs a full carrier-grade voice network with interconnect to all the other operators including our own geographic number ranges, etc.

We steadfastly stayed out of the LCR market as the quality in that space is really problematic even considering the (substantially) lower pricing compared to 'proper' interconnect.

Thus the excitement inside the company around the drive to lower MTR!

While most consumers just want to see lower rates due to a drop in MTR, another, equally important, benefit is that one will now be able to get 'proper VoIP' without having to fall prey to some of the tricks seen in the industry like refiling, community SIMs, etc.
 
[offtopic] Jannie, why are you up at 02h30 in the morning -- you have to be at work at 07h00. Burning the candle at both ends, eh. [/offtopic]
 
Like many people Iburst's accounts department put me off from even looking at them as a possible replacement for my Sentech. The only people who outshine their incompetence is JHB's lights and water!
 
They came so close to nabbing me as a customer for their prepaid offerings. All the horror stories of the accounts department on the MyBroadband forum freaked me out. Prepaid is perfect cause I wouldn't have to deal with their department at all!

I use Vodacom HSDPA while at the office and we have good iBurst coverage according to the iBurst map. I typically load up with 2 gigs of data for the month at R389. I am looking for something between the R200 and R500 topup bundles that iBurst offer. Sadly there is none and so I keep on forking over my money to Vodacom :(

I think that with some of the positive moves that have been made recently they should stay in business and grow :)
 
Last gasps... IBurst wireless will not be here this time next year... wait and see.

Nice try though.

Advertorials vs SPAM ... I'd rather read an advertorial any day than SPAM.

OOhhh... I just remembered...
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showpost.php?p=3236506&postcount=16
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http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showpost.php?p=3236795&postcount=17
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"iBurst decided to not go through a formal retrenchement process, but rather offered a very attractive voluntary retrenchment option to the staff. This allowed the staff to be part of the process ensuring the most positive approach to the restructuring requirements. I'm very confident this was the correct way to proceed and we should be able to conclude the process, which started in August, within the next few days. Then it's nose to the grindstone stuff in building the new initiatives," Van Zyl added.
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Hmmmm... nothing there folks... mooooove on....
 
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I would go back to iburst in a heartbeat, but as someone who has no need for wireless, they are way too expensive- when I left them, they were charging R250 a gig (which I guess isn't too much compared to other wireless offerings...)
Just an interesting thought... Here is an example of something I have observed quite often- I went to watch a friends garage band performing in hatfield- they decided on a R40 cover charge. Naturally, with all the free venues the only people that came to watch them were friends and families. There were so many people that came to the door, but turned away when they heard the price. In the end, they ended up with about 10 people there. I wager that if they had of charged R10, they would have made more than double what they did, more people would have bought alcohol, so the venue would have invited them back, and there would have been a much better vibe.
now in the same vein, im wondering how much it costs iburst per gig- if they charging these prices to try and make huge profits quickly, or if they genuinely cant afford to cut their prices, and more than make up those cuts in volume?? would it be viable for them to compete with adsl, and have the benefits of not being telkom and a wireless offering for an exceptionally good price
 
ave said:
Just an interesting thought... Here is an example of something I have observed quite often- I went to watch a friends garage band performing in hatfield- they decided on a R40 cover charge. Naturally, with all the free venues the only people that came to watch them were friends and families. There were so many people that came to the door, but turned away when they heard the price. In the end, they ended up with about 10 people there. I wager that if they had of charged R10, they would have made more than double what they did, more people would have bought alcohol, so the venue would have invited them back, and there would have been a much better vibe.
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I believe it's called a Demand Curve, although it's not as simple as, 'The higher the price, the less you sell'.

The higher the availability of substitutes, the flatter the Demand curve is. A few years ago, iBurst could get away with charging their high prices because there was a steep Demand curve, higher prices did result in higher revenues.

These days, bandwidth has become commoditised(sp?) and the demand curve has flattened, so iBurst's old business model no longer works.

It's seems like they face a choice of 'Adapt or Die' and based on their noticeable inability to Adapt, we can only assume it will be the latter.
 
Out of MTN/Telkom/Iburst I had the worst experience with Telkom and the best experience with Iburst. Everybody has their issues, but at least Iburst is working on them and letting us know. That I appreciate. If their customer service is great and people percieve their products as value and quality for money, then people wont mind to paying a little bit extra, I certainly wouldnt. Though at R200 a gig top up this is not it.

I'd rather see telkom die a horrible death, but alas...
 
I just hope they do the VR process well and I will really hate to see them being bitten on the back site
 
Nefertiti said:
Out of MTN/Telkom/Iburst I had the worst experience with Telkom and the best experience with Iburst. Everybody has their issues, but at least Iburst is working on them and letting us know. That I appreciate. If their customer service is great and people percieve their products as value and quality for money, then people wont mind to paying a little bit extra, I certainly wouldnt. Though at R200 a gig top up this is not it.

I'd rather see telkom die a horrible death, but alas...
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+1

Their biggest bundle is a 10Gb package which isn't enough for half the broadband users out there. I also regret having to get Telkom in to wire me up for ADSL, but I got the ball rolling today co-incidentally.

I've been waiting for them to reduce their prices but they haven't budged in a year.

Farewell iburst. Thanks for the 5 years of really reliable broadband. (just a tad expensive)
 
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