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Tariff cuts bad news for dial-ups

If the introduction of broadband (256 kbps and above) earlier this year spelt trouble for dial-up Internet in the country, the recent round of tariff reductions for high speed Internet by major service providers may just mark the end of dial-ups.

Data compiled by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) show that over 60 per cent of subscribers who went in for Internet connections during April-July 2005, chose a broadband connection over dial-up. About 4, 00,000 subscribers were added to the internet base during this period from just under 50,000 broadband users in India at the beginning of 2005. Besides, the broadband sector has witnessed an average growth of 60 per cent over the last five months.

The decline in dial-up subscriber base has resulted in Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL), which was the largest Internet provider in India , losing 24 per cent market share during the quarter ended March 2005.

The advent of broadband has also seen over 100 Internet service providers which offered dial-up services being edged out of the market over the last six months. Larger ISPs like Sify have survived as they have ventured into ADSL-based broadband services on copper cables.

A dial-up connection costs an average of Rs 30 per hour. BSNL now provides unlimited broadband access for Rs 250 a month, but with an upload/download limited of 400 MB, while MTNL offers unlimited connectivity at Rs 399 a month and a download limit of 1 GB.

BSNL has set a target of a million broadband subscribers by 2005-end, to million by the next year and 10 million by 2010, while MTNL has a target of providing 500,000 subscribers by the year-end.


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