India broadband

There are nearly 4 million broadband users in India and around a dozen broadband internet service providers. Last month, a survey on broadband usage in India conducted by PC World ended. Here are some interesting highlights from the survey results.

40 percent of the ones who participated in the survey have 256 Kbps connection. This is no surprise since not may seek a connection for more than mailings, chatting or a little surfing. A 256 Kbps connection proves to be comparatively reliable and meets the basic needs of the average internet user.

29 percent of the people have 2 Mbps connection. With big players like BSNL and Airtel extending offers to upgrade a 256 Kbps connection to a 2 Mbps connection, enthusiastic internet users are likely to go for the higher bandwidth.

49.6 percent people use the broadband connection to work from home. The working-from-home trend has picked up at a big scale in India lately. Thus, having a no-down broadband connection is needed.

Among other uses, online gaming and watching videos online are popular with internet enthusiasts. Of the participants in the PC World survey, 48.3 percent watch videos online and 30.2 percent indulge in games online. 84.1 percent people mentioned that they download media.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is the leading broadband service provider in India. Owned by the government of India, BSNL has the widest reach among all internet service providers operating in the city.

DataOne, a broadband service provided by broadband already covers more than 700 cities in the country. This September will see broadband reaching more than twenty thousand rural locations like panchayats, zila parishads, and district headquarters connect to the rest of the world through broadband, that is, when BSNL’s new, ambitious project materializes.

The service provider will employ advanced software technology for making this plan come alive. BSNL is also looking at making the telecom and broadband usage more cost-effective for its consumers.

Apart from this rural-reach plan, BSNL has quite a number of plans in its kitty. Extensive fiber networks across the country and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) are just to name a couple of its plans. BSNL will be employing 3G telecom networks all over the country.

With government of India’s dream to offer free, high-speed broadband to all the citizens of India by 2009, I wonder what would happen to the other service providers in the country. They must gear up for the challenge.

Airtel broadband advantages

Airtel broadband service is considered to have a more organized, better customer support as compared to that provided by BSNL.

Airtel comes equipped with extra features, luring customers with varied interests. Airtel has recently come up with an on-demand usage scheme wherein the customer pays for as much as he/she uses. This plan will help Airtel stand strongly against less expensive service providers like BSNL.

BSNL broadband advantages

Thanks to the dedicated and wide network, BSNL’s broadband service has a wider reach compared to any service provider operating in India. The service reaches even the rural areas, unlike other major service providers.

BSNL’s broadband service is considered to be more cost-effective that other broadband service providers, making it a popular choice in an economical perspective.

Airtel broadband drawbacks

Compared to BSNL’s broadband service, the Airtel broadband service requires its subscribers to shell out more money.

BSNL broadband drawbacks

BSNL broadband’s popularity has made people queue up for its service. However, the long delay in getting a broadband connection may actually deflect the pursuers to another broadband service provider.

BSNL has not been known for its customer service. Its poor customer support is credited to its state-owned status.

Both the services are popular in their own right.

Is the quality of service commensurate with the telecom industry growth in India? The country is reported to have record increase in broadband subscriptions but the quality of service is not improving. If you happen to visit any of the online broadband forums, you will understand what I am talking about. Very rarely do you see anyone writing something good about a service provider.

India has almost a dozen big broadband service providers; however, none of them seem to satisfy the consumers. You will come across several instances of a foreign national writing off the broadband service scene in India. They ought to be frustrated given the stark difference of service between the broadband connectivity in India and that in other technologically advanced countries. For uninterrupted broadband connectivity for their business, they often make use of two or more broadband connections. This idea, though fine for businesses, does not work with individuals. Individual consumers cannot afford multiple connections.

The broadband consumers in India do not have anything to compare services with, but they are aware they are not getting a decent service, let alone optimum benefits from the service. To add to their woes, the frantic calls to the customer service for help remain unheeded.

Good internet connection is still considered a luxury in India. The Indian government wants to change the perception. Last year, in April, the government of India announced that all Indian citizens will enjoy free broadband service by 2009. The Indian government’s offer comes from its confidence in its service providers, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL broadband) and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL broadband).

The Indian government is set out to offer 2-Mbps broadband internet connectivity to the citizens of India. The government proposes to fund this scheme by using the money generated in the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF). This fund collects 5% revenue from all telecom companies operating in the country.

State-transmitted broadband scheme is already available in several municipal areas in the United States. India will need to set up the requisite infrastructure for the success of this ambitious project in the country. The Department of Telecom (DoT) will be building an optical cable network across the country. The internet service providers operating in the country will be required to connect to the National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI).

It will be a great boost to the Indian economic dream if this plan of the Indian government materializes. Let’s hope it does.