MP champions rural areas in British push for national broadband

A member of the British Parliament urges the government to devote special attention to rural areas plagued with abysmal ADSL connections for its national broadband plan.

MP Graham Stuart, the representative of Beverley and Holderness, has encouraged his constituents to raise whatever issue they have with their access to fast and reliable Internet.

In an interview with ITV News, Mr. Stuart expressed his belief that the government must assist regions that lack a strong commercial incentive to provide broadband. This can come in the form of more traditional optic fiber and wireless services, as well as the new satellite Internet option.

Mr. Stuart took heart in the recent decision by the European Union to approve Britain's plan to provide broadband connectivity to rural regions. The MP urged that the government begin ensuring broadband access in rural areas within the East Riding.

There is a concern that small and medium-sized enterprises in Britain might lag behind their foreign counterparts if they do not receive a chance to partake of the digital advancements of recent years, innovations such as broadband Internet by satellite and other, more traditional ways of delivering connectivity.

DirecTV announces pricing, discount for ViaSat satellite Internet bundles

DirecTV recently revealed the pricing for its Exede satellite broadband bundle provided by ViaSat. In addition, it decided to promote its new high-speed satellite Internet service by implementing a $10 monthly discount across the board.

According to DirecTV, the monthly price for the 12 Mbps Exede satellite broadband service will be $39.99 for 10GB of data, $69.99 for 15GB, and $119.99 for 25GB.

The $10 discount will apply for the first half of a two-year contract. Customers will must sign up for the Exede satellite Internet bundle before January 31, 2013.

As a further incentive, DirecTV will also refund the $49.99 installation fee.

Satellite broadband companies generally impose data caps on customers' satellite Internet bundles. To compensate for those data caps, DirectTV will allow Exede users to access the Internet between midnight and 5 A.M. Using the Internet during such off-hours will not count against their data cap. This is best used to deal with any streaming needs such as Windows updates.

South Africa, looking for 100% broadband penetration through satellites

The South African government’s goal of a broadband penetration rate of 100% across the country may become a reality but not on fibre optic and fixed wireless alone. According to the Department of Communications, satellite technology will play a crucial role in the national broadband project, as traditional terrestrial networks cannot cover remote regions and rural communities.

Norman Munzhelele, the General Manager of the department, said that satellite communications can be used to increase the present 30% nationwide coverage to 75%, although speeds will be limited using the said technology, and installation may be more costly.

Still, experts agree that satellite services are far more cost-effective as a broadband solution to huge tracts of rural regions. The CEO of Avanti Communications agree that telecom operators will find it uneconomical to lay down fibre networks in remote regions with few population compared to urban areas. Mobile operators in Africa, however, are still hurdling the challenge of remote connectivity that is integrated with national networks.