ADSL rates coming down

ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa), 3 June 2007

Combined price ADSLrates are starting to come down as more and more Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are joining the one price ADSL revolution in South Africa.
 
Telkom started it with the launch of ‘…their Do Broadband ADSL service which combines the ADSL Access and ADSL ISP portions, with some price reductions accompanying this service. Telkom’s Do Broadband 384 service with a 1 GB usage allowance is priced at R 279-00 per month, a significant saving when compared to their traditional offerings’ (Combined price ADSL rates start to decline, MyADSL, 30 May 2007).
 
In other words, Telkom started something that already resulted in substantial savings compared to their traditional ADSL offerings.
 
Is Telkom’s Do Broadband ADSL service still the cheapest one Price ADSL service?
 
No, not since the likes of Web Africa and Sainet Internet have joined the party.
 
Web Africa answered Do Broadband’s war cry last month with a similar service priced at R275 per month. This resulted in an additional cost saving of R4 per month (R48 per year) for ADSL users who makes use of Web Africa’s combined price ADSL service.
 
Sainet Internet however responded to the war cries of both Do Broadband and Web Africa, leaving both grasping for air…
 
Sainet Internet responded with a similar offering (DSL 384 Access service with a 1 GB usage limit) but with a price difference of R20 per month (R240 per year) when compared to Do Broadband’s offering and R16 per month (R192 per year) when compared to Web Africa’s.
 
Savings might not be substantial at this stage but we’re sure most ADSL users would welcome the downward ADSL price trend.
 
Will both business and home users benefit from one price ADSL?
 
Yes.
 
According to Managing Director of Sainet, Marius Oberholzer: “One Price ADSL services kicked in and enabled ISPs to deliver a one stop service. Both business and home users will benefit from the One Price model, service enhancements and lower prices” (Combined price ADSL rates start to decline, MyADSL, 30 May 2007).
 
In other words, one price ADSL will benefit both business and home users since it will result in ‘service enhancements and lower prices.’
 
Is one price ADSL or combined price ADSL the new ‘in’ thing in South Africa?
 
Yes, it surely is the new ‘in’ thing in South Africa.
 
Oberholzer pointed out: “Sainet converted its entire full access dialup customer base to ADSL, providing the dialup free of charge with the service” (Combined price ADSL rates start to decline, MyADSL, 30 May 2007).
 
In other words, it’s clear although dialup access is still with us, that more and more people are switching to ADSL and other broadband alternatives. The fact that a big players such as Sainet is now providing dialup free of charge with their ADSL service can only mean one thing: They believe one price ADSL to be the new ‘in’ thing.
 
Can we expect further ADSL price drops?
 
Yes.
 
‘With the start of local loop unbundling and equal access on SAT-3 looming on the horizon, ADSL may become more competitive in the near future. The latest price drops give a good indication as to the benefits of competition, and with more competitive wholesale ADSL services consumers may be in for a treat’ (Combined price ADSL rates start to decline, MyADSL, 30 May 2007).
 
In other words, ADSL users and ISPs alike can expect to see prices come down further when Telkom get kicked in the butt in the near future.
 
ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa) welcomes the price cuts since it will surely leave more money in the pockets of ADSL users in South Africa.