SEACOM reveals bandwidth utilisation

Keeper said:
well at least the Rwanda President thanked the seacom people for bringing faster communication technology to his country.

I don't think our President has even heard of the interwebs
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There are still so many cows to be milked, why should he?
 
All i read is we will only use 5 or 6 % but charge you like we are full capacity... We will leave the sit, so we can claim that we have potential.
 
It's really been great since the Seacom cable starting operating. So far, for me, Joe Public, the highlights have been, um, uh, oh, nothing. Zero. Nada. Niks nie. Aside from a couple of ISP's using marketing budgets to offer below cost, unsustainable bandwidth prices, the picture for the ADSL user has not changed a bit. Don't you just love it? What were we thinking? International bandwidth cost doesn't count. If they gave it away for free we'd still be paying R50/gig. It's the local loopy, no, hang on, it's the current economic climate, it's the flipping weather. How can you expect cheaper bandwidth with all these factors? At least we have our health :)
 
What should embarrass us is that Kenya is having a bigger/better broadband penetration/utilization than South Africa, supposedly the "first world country in africa" if africa was the only continent in the world...
 
“The next big [thing] is cloud computing. What you actually have to hold in your hand can be a pretty simple device, and applications from the cloud can be as sophisticated as you want. This is most exciting for Africa ... as cloud computing is the ultimate in economy of scale,” said Herlihy.
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Sigh...or am I the only one that isn't quite as excited about cloud computing?
 
It's economy of scale. SEACOM want to maximise their profit and can sell to the tier 0 providers at high prices right now because there is no competition. They in turn can resell to lower tiers because it isn't worth it for seacom to sell lower bandwidth wholesale and COMPETE with the tier 0 providers (they'd rather have their business).

Why we are not seeing immediate benefit is because there is no competition with the whole telecoms hierarchy to expand their networks; we all know how Teljom hoards and the only new line is seacom. Later on, when Eassy and WACS come, seacom prices will have to be lower, and then we will see true competition and therefore lower prices being passed on to us. I finally understand the statement by the IS CEO...

Furthermore, we can't compare to overseas as they have many scores of high capacity cables and the competition is a lot healthier. So what seacom have done, if not anything else, is set the ball rolling for healthy competition in the near future.

I hope I've understood the situation correctly. Would be nice for someone at seacom to comment. It seems we are still playing a waiting game unless our esteemed minister can wake up and get the local loop unbundled. This will open DSL to all players, cross-subsidize tier 0 networks and force prices to come down. Less profit for Telkom? No, they would prefer the waiting game too.

At the end of the day, seacom is just an expensive piece of string connected at one end to a London ISP. We need many more of these pieces, connected to world networks, to be able to see low cost internet in this country. How that will be passed on to us is an econometric calculation with a typical African blend of variables :)
 
zakdoc89 said:
FFS equip the damn cable for 1.28Tbps................ What's holding them back??
It doesn't make sense.... We need more bandwidth yet we don't use the facilities. Kind of like having a Bentley and the money to run it but using a TAXI instead...... WTF
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The thing holding them back is here in SA, we're the only economy of scale on the continent and we're only allowed to use 4-5 gigs a month because bloody telkom / neotel / vodacom / ....... etc is choking us to death.

As with seacom maximising their profits???? more like local ISPs doing that, seacom has nothing to do with it.
 
The worst thing for me about all this, is that since the landing of that cable all kinds of bigshots are running around claiming accolades for landing the cable. Making hollow promises about how much more affordable things will become. Then they get shown the path to ritches, the SA Telecoms way. Suddenly 10 reasons why pricing has not improved are invented, all kinds of stalling tactics are used, and again the SA consumer gets shafted.

Fearing total anarchy these actions are quickly followed with more stories about more cables which will land on our shores shortly. Again the promise of more affordable internet is made, and then the ugly vicious cycle starts all over again.

Anyway I guess it does not really matter. If Eskom get their own way (which they will) they will keep implementing a "raize the price of electricity over the next 3 years" until such time that the average citizen cannot afford it anymore, and so the Govs new cash cow is born. Soon thereafter a new website will be launched: "MyElectricity.co.za" and consumers will moan and bitch about how they are being ripped off by Eishkom.

Aaah life in Africa, gotto love it...
 
Vixremento said:
Sigh...or am I the only one that isn't quite as excited about cloud computing?
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I hate cloud computing. All my good jokes are in my Google Docs and now I'm capped:(:(. If it weren't for Afrihost, I'd be screwed for the rest of the month!
 
Have read thru all the posts and feel horribly depro now *grabs some chocolate*.
Oh but I also just heard about cocoa plantations being in trouble cause of climate change and chocolate may become just as scarce as a high quality internet connection in Safrica!
Doom and Gloom :-( wake me from this nightmare when the broadband light comes on pls.
 
what has seacom done for me? sweet F***K all.... prices are still as high and unaffordable as they were before...
 
MFour said:
The worst thing for me about all this, is that since the landing of that cable all kinds of bigshots are running around claiming accolades for landing the cable. Making hollow promises about how much more affordable things will become. Then they get shown the path to ritches, the SA Telecoms way. Suddenly 10 reasons why pricing has not improved are invented, all kinds of stalling tactics are used, and again the SA consumer gets shafted.

Fearing total anarchy these actions are quickly followed with more stories about more cables which will land on our shores shortly. Again the promise of more affordable internet is made, and then the ugly vicious cycle starts all over again.

Anyway I guess it does not really matter. If Eskom get their own way (which they will) they will keep implementing a "raize the price of electricity over the next 3 years" until such time that the average citizen cannot afford it anymore, and so the Govs new cash cow is born. Soon thereafter a new website will be launched: "MyElectricity.co.za" and consumers will moan and bitch about how they are being ripped off by Eishkom.

Aaah life in Africa, gotto love it...
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I wonder, do you think corporates themselves are to blame or do you think the quality of reporting (ie the media) in this country is below par.
 
Lazy said:
I wonder, do you think corporates themselves are to blame or do you think the quality of reporting (ie the media) in this country is below par.
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Good question to ponder, but I suspect blame can be laid on both fronts.

Firstly the corporates that continually take us for a ride and when they get caught out, spin doctors to the rescue.

Secondly the media should i.m.o. not only report the facts, but possibly be a bit more aggresive overall. No-one is really holding corporate SA or Government responsible for their actions. I think the media should play a much larger role here, not only certain media groups, but all public media groups. More of asking the hard questions and settling for nothing less than the real truth, not the spin doctored truth.

We as citizens moan a bit, but eventually lack the will to follow through, so I guess I'm blaming myself as well, just another moaning SA *****izen.
 
Personally...I think just as much to blame for the high prices are us, the consumer. If we pay, be it begrudgingly, then the isps will keep charging us what we are so willing to pay. We bitch and moan every month...but come the 1st of every month we take it up the behind and pay these outrageous prices.
Personally...I am tired of having telkom's shaft up my behind...it's getting tight alongside IS's shaft and every other person who is screwing me up the behind...but, come every month I still pay for that shaft to be there...weird I know :P
 
klasvaakie said:
Personally...I think just as much to blame for the high prices are us, the consumer. If we pay, be it begrudgingly, then the isps will keep charging us what we are so willing to pay. We bitch and moan every month...but come the 1st of every month we take it up the behind and pay these outrageous prices.
Personally...I am tired of having telkom's shaft up my behind...it's getting tight alongside IS's shaft and every other person who is screwing me up the behind...but, come every month I still pay for that shaft to be there...weird I know :P
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And what would you suggest we do? Not use the internet? I dont know about anyone else but my livelihood depends on having internet so I pay, albeit begrudgingly, and I'll continue to moan.
 
Bwana...I agree...it's hard...I am addicted to my internet connection being there. Just stating we are also to blame...not just the corporate bastids that we complain about :P

And I never said I knew the solution...just knew what was part of the problem :P...lol
 
Sorry but there is nothing you can do but k*k and betaal. These companies are not your friends, they are in it to milk it.
 
Whatwhat...every company is in it to milk it :P...I mean, good bussines practice goes as follows...when closing a deal, assume the other person is trying to screw you, so you better screw him before he can screw you. :P
Corporate entities work on one fundamental structural point...maxamise profits no matter the cost :P
 
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