Broadband target raised to 500,000

jwt

GOVERNMENT ambitions to have 400,000 broadband subscribers by the end of 2006 have already been met, with 410,000 fast-internet users in Ireland currently, Minister for Communications Noel Dempsey will tell a telecoms conference later today.

As a result, the Government has pushed out its target for the end of 2006 to 500,000 broadband subscribers, ahead of the original aims set in 2004.

But despite the improvements, geographic limitations to broadband keep us at the bottom of the European league, according to analysts.

Ailish O'Hora

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=184&si=1691294&issue_id=14664

Damien is at the "telecoms conference" as we speak.


John

bealtine

jwt wrote:

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=184&si=1691294&issue_id=14664

John

I see the indo has been "liberated"...

jwt

My God your not saying their was some conflict of interest there in the past are you?????????????????

John

bealtine

jwt wrote:

My God your not saying their was some conflict of interest there in the past are you?????????????????

John

Who me? Pas de chance that there was a "conflict of interest"... really now that
would take away from the integrity of the journalists and we all know how their integrity and deep understanding of the issues is beyond reproach...

Hacketry

bealtine wrote:

Who me? Pas de chance that there was a "conflict of interest"... really now that
would take away from the integrity of the journalists and we all know how their integrity and deep understanding of the issues is beyond reproach...

Hear, hear!

Underpaid, over-worked servants of democracy with a deep and abiding passion for technology news

CUT

damien

Hacketry wrote:

with a deep and abiding passion for technology news

and free lunches.

Hacketry

damien.m wrote:

and free lunches.

Damn.
Foiled again.

With regard to the broadband conference, I thought it was interesting that all this online gaming on the Xbox and Sony PSP3 migt drive broadband take up.

In global terms, Ireland has the second highest per capita penetration of Sony Playstations and is an important market for Sony. If the PS3 is as successfull might we see console gamers drinving broadband uptake so they can play each other online?

bealtine

More on this "story":

http://www.siliconrepublic.com/news/news.nv?storyid=single7084

http://breakingnews.iol.ie/news/story_business_island.asp?j=196080910&p=y96x8y6y6

bk

Hacketry wrote:

With regard to the broadband conference, I thought it was interesting that all this online gaming on the Xbox and Sony PSP3 migt drive broadband take up.

In global terms, Ireland has the second highest per capita penetration of Sony Playstations and is an important market for Sony. If the PS3 is as successfull might we see console gamers drinving broadband uptake so they can play each other online?

Yes, I've been saying this for a long time now, many people who haven't much interest in the net and mightn't even have a computer will end up on BB due to gaming which increasingly requires BB as a prerequisite.

All the next gen game consoles (Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, PS3) and handhelds (PSP, DS) all have online gaming capabilities. Interestingly the Wii is even an always on device, when you switch it off it continues to be on the net, downloading updates, etc.

Also this is going to greatly increase bandwidth demands (caps, etc) for instance many of the demos and downloadable games on the 360 are over 1GB a hit. Bandwidth usage is going to greatly increase.

That is why UPCs actions are so crazy at the moment, by routing through Amsterdam they are greatly increasing latency which is very bad for gamers and now they are trying to enforce a too small cap. Madness.

watty

Hacketry wrote:

Damn.
Foiled again.

With regard to the broadband conference, I thought it was interesting that all this online gaming on the Xbox and Sony PSP3 migt drive broadband take up.

In global terms, Ireland has the second highest per capita penetration of Sony Playstations and is an important market for Sony. If the PS3 is as successfull might we see console gamers drinving broadband uptake so they can play each other online?

I bought Network interfaces for two PS2s and newer ones have LAN built in. I know of hardly anyone useing any of the many PS2 network games over the Internet. Why? Because the folks with PS2s can't get broadband in the past and only about 1/2 of them now.

PC guild wars and Nintendo DS etc doing more in driving Broaband than the mythical PS3 and the XBox360(which still sells less than PS2).

I wonder how much research these people really do?

damien

Hacketry wrote:

In global terms, Ireland has the second highest per capita penetration of Sony Playstations and is an important market for Sony. If the PS3 is as successfull might we see console gamers drinving broadband uptake so they can play each other online?

IrelandOffline have been highlighting the usage of Playsations and X-boxes for years. It shows Ireland is not a country full of luddites and knocks osme of the usual stupid excuses on the head. Has broadband usage gone up because of x-box live though?

bk

watty wrote:

I bought Network interfaces for two PS2s and newer ones have LAN built in. I know of hardly anyone useing any of the many PS2 network games over the Internet. Why? Because the folks with PS2s can't get broadband in the past and only about 1/2 of them now.

In fariness, PS2 was never very good for online gaming, there were only a few games that supported it and not very well. PS2 was really just a bad first experiment in console online gaming.

Xbox and especially 360 do a far superior job at it. Many if not most Xbox gamers play Halo and Halo2 online and the 360 really pushes out the online abilities, with free demos, trailers, extra levels, etc. all to be downloaded. In fact it is almost impossible to use the 360 without BB.

watty wrote:

PC guild wars and Nintendo DS etc doing more in driving Broaband than the mythical PS3 and the XBox360(which still sells less than PS2).

Of course, I'm just making the point that all the consoles out this Christmas will make very heavy use of BB.

damien.m wrote:

Has broadband usage gone up because of x-box live though?

Has it increased bandwidth usage? Certainly, yes.

Has it driven new customers? No, not yet.

At the moment, I'd say most Xbox and 360 users are early adapter types who already have BB on a PC.

However I believe by Christmas 2007 it will have a big effect as mainstream consumers are expected to start buying into the new consoles and will likely look to get BB.

As it is, gamers already make up a large percentage of internet users and ISP's need to cater to their needs (primarily low latency and good stability).

Sponge Bob

I'll wager that NTL will probably cut off 25% of their customers by the end of january then

damien

bk wrote:

Has it increased bandwidth usage? Certainly, yes.

So does spyware. Maybe the Govt should promote that as means to increase broadband demand?

thebman

damien.m wrote:

IrelandOffline have been highlighting the usage of Playsations and X-boxes for years. It shows Ireland is not a country full of luddites and knocks osme of the usual stupid excuses on the head. Has broadband usage gone up because of x-box live though?

bk wrote:

At the moment, I'd say most Xbox and 360 users are early adapter types who already have BB on a PC.

I've been trying to get my DS online since Mario Kart in March but no broadband is available in rural Ireland other than Satellite which we have but is no use for gaming. Something must be done.

All next gen console use it.

360 for gaming, PS3 for gaming and media content downloads (music/movies etc..).

And Nintendo's Wii uses it for online shopping, gaming and downloading additional content for your Wii games after they've been released via Wii Connect 24 which is always on and connected and downloading content even when you sleep.

Wii and PS3 online are free.

Come December Wii will launch and 360 is out with PS3 releasing next March. The government are not only ensuring we can't use broadband at the moment in rural Ireland (and not good enough for gaming in a lot of areas it is available) but when these consoles launch we won't be able to get additional content for games even though we pay for it in the price of the game on the store shelf.

Irish retailers already rip off Irish gamers on price (75 Euro for Xbox 360 game) and now we can't even make use of the features of the game due to lack of broadband (or good enough broadband) access.

oscarBravo

brim4brim wrote:

...no broadband is available in rural Ireland other than Satellite...

Maynooth is rural now? :eek:

Inishboffin has (non-satellite) broadband, and that's about as rural as you get...

thebman

oscarBravo wrote:

Maynooth is rural now? :eek:

Inishboffin has (non-satellite) broadband, and that's about as rural as you get...

I'm not in Maynooth anymore, I'm just too lazy to update my profile . I'm about 6 miles outside Tullamore now

oscarBravo

No Last Mile there, no?

thebman

oscarBravo wrote:

No Last Mile there, no?

No, nothing. My da was leading up a local initiative to get wireless here but the company said there wasn't enough interest to make it worth their while at the moment.