Expect broadband prices to fall further
IDA says there is room for prices to fall due to more competition here.
Alfred Siew
Sat, Dec 09, 2006
The Straits Times
HONG KONG - INTERNET users who have enjoyed cheaper and faster broadband services this year can expect even better deals next year.
Prices should drop further as the full impact of increased competition begins to tell, said Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) deputy chief executive officer Leong Keng Thai.
From nearly $50 a month, prices of basic home broadband services have dropped to under $30. Service providers are also launching new packages with speeds of up to 100Mbps - more than three times faster than the current 30Mbps.
This will allow multiple users in one home to surf the Internet, watch YouTube videos and play online games at the same time.
Speaking to reporters at the ITU Telecom World trade show in Hong Kong on Thursday, Mr Leong said he sees 'more room for price drops'.
He stopped short of predicting numbers, but some experts speculate that prices could fall to about $20 a month.
Mr Leong also said the Government is encouraged by the initial response to the free Wireless@SG Internet service which went online at 600 hot spots on Dec 1.
On the very first day, 45,000 people signed up for the service, which allows them to surf the Net for free at public places such as cafes, shopping malls and town centres.
Users can also make cheap Internet calls, download e-mail and read news at a speed of 512Kbps.
Wireless@SG is expected to be available at 5,000 hot spots by September next year.
'It's early days yet, but we are very happy with the response,' said Mr Leong.
The Government is committing $30 million of the $100 million needed to roll out Wireless@SG - a move that has ignited a quiet broadband market.
Although the service is available only in public areas, it has put pressure on broadband operators to come up with better deals.
In response, some may bundle broadband service with TV programmes delivered over the Net, said Mr Bryan Wang, director of Asia-Pacific research at analyst firm In-Stat.
SingTel has already jumped into the fray, planning a pay-TV service next year to capture broadband customers.
Mr Leong said government regulators from countries such as Egypt and Canada have expressed interest in Wireless@SG and in learning how they can introduce competition in their own markets.
The IDA had a 210 sq m booth at the Hong Kong show - which ran from Monday to yesterday.
Looking forward, Mr Leong predicted that faster broadband networks in the next few years will bring new services like high-definition TV delivered over the Internet.
'A future YouTube video may be played on a full screen instead of that small window now,' he said.
This article first appeared in ST on December 09, 2006