Tis been posted in the ICT News thread, but thought this deserves its own thread :banana:

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ADSL uncapped at R219 per month
MyBroadband | 18 March, 2010

MWEB aims to ‘free the web’ with the lowest prices ever on uncapped ADSL accounts

An online social media campaign called ‘Free The Web’ has over the past few days gained momentum, sparking speculation that one of the larger companies are planning something big.

A Facebook page was created with the message “We're frustrated by the limitations of the internet in SA. Let's celebrate the greatness of the web and call for a change! Join us and be the first to know when we succeed in our cause to Free The Web in SA!”

This Facebook page quickly grew in popularity through both word of mouth and an aggressive advertising campaign, and has to date attracted over 13,000 fans.

The company behind the initiative, which was until recently unknown, said that “Our grand plan is announced in just a few days time [today].”

MWEB unveils their plan

It has now been revealed that MWEB was behind this social media campaign, and the announcement was indeed significant: Uncapped ADSL bandwidth at affordable rates.

“On 22 March 2010, MWEB will launch a series of affordable uncapped ADSL products in the South African market targeted at both consumers and businesses,” the company said in a press statement.

The product offerings are as follows:

MWEB Connect (Consumer product; month-to-month)
Uncapped ADSL 384kbps: R219
Uncapped ADSL 512kbps: R299
Uncapped ADSL 4096kbps: R539

All inclusive
Uncapped All-inclusive 384kbps: R349
Uncapped All-inclusive 512kbps: R599
Uncapped All-inclusive 4096kbps: R899

MWEB BUSINESS (Business product; 12 month contract)
Uncapped ADSL 384kbps: R499
Uncapped ADSL 512kbps: R699
Uncapped ADSL 4096kbps: R1 999

All-inclusive
Uncapped All-inclusive 384kbps: R629
Uncapped All-inclusive 512kbps: R999
Uncapped All-inclusive 4096kbps: R2 259

MWEB Uncapped ADSL (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?221700-Uncapped-ADSL-at-R219-per-month-from-MWEB) << discussion

Whats the difference between the 4 ADSL 384 options at different prices? can only make out one is consumer month to month and other is business 12 month...greater clarity?

BUT sounds amazing prices!!

Afrihost ftw!! Where would we be if they didn't suddenly announce R29/gb adsl. I like the look of this mweb deal, sadly telkom isnt interested in installing lines in the area im living in currently so all this is gonna pass me by...

Whats the difference between the 4 ADSL 384 options at different prices? can only make out one is consumer month to month and other is business 12 month...greater clarity?

BUT sounds amazing prices!!

384Kbps Consumer is an uncapped internet account.
384Kbps Consumer All-Inclusive is an uncapped internet account + Telkom line rental included.

The same goes for the 384Kbps business (+ the fact that the business accounts are not shaped and allow for more concurrent connections, hence the slightly higher price)

Thats no good if Telkom is the only provider of fixed lines. Im waiting since NOVEMBER 2009 (almost FIVE months) to get an ADSL port to my home- and Im living in the Cape Metropole! Telkom simply doesnt care and give ten jacks!

Strange...when we got DSL in 2007 (when Telkom were worse than they are now), they quoted a wait of 6 weeks minimum for installation, and 2 days later we were up and running :D

I got ADSL at my place with 2 days.....

R349 is not all that bad to cough up considering what we pay now, it still is murder but hey! uncapped FTW!

Score! :cheers:

Hi Lydon

xxxxx's asked me to get in touch you. We really appreciate that you helped us out with keeping the big reveal under wraps.

To say thanks, we've organised:
3 months complimentary Uncapped ADSL from MWEB
512 kbps data package

Hey... I didn't tell anyone either! Do I get some free interwebs?

Lol :D OpenWeb's jumped on board...

Challenges

In an apparent response to MWEB, the packages start at R219 per month for a 384kbps connection, and range to R539 for 4096kbps. For business users the price ranges from R499 to R1999, respectively.

"OpenWeb will officially be launching the packages on Tuesday (March23)," he added.

Hahaha, it continues :banana:

Vox uncapped ADSL: Best prices yet!

Vox Telecom has joined MWeb by announcing the introduction of uncapped ADSL services; Best pricing in the market

The cost of broadband services in South Africa is finally being driven down by competition, despite Telkom still holding a monopoly over the internet market.

Today, Vox Telecom has joined MWeb by announcing the introduction of uncapped ADSL services for our consumers.

“We are revamping all our broadband solutions to cater for the widest spectrum of users, ranging from people who are extremely price-sensitive to those looking for the very highest quality experience.

Our consumer-oriented @lantic internet service provider is ready to launch its new broadband offering, while Vox Datapro and Vox Telepreneur are busy revamping their ranges.

Vox Telecom/@lantic will be launching bundled ADSL offerings which include both ADSL access and an uncapped ISP account. Vox’s pricing is even more aggressive that MWEB’s pricing:

Uncapped All-inclusive 384kbps: R339
Uncapped All-inclusive 512kbps: R589
Uncapped All-inclusive 4096kbps: R889

This move will give our customers unlimited access to the internet for a fixed monthly fee, with no sudden and frustrating cut-off when they reach the caps that were previously in place.

With Vox Datapro the accent will be on quality and flexibility for corporate customers. The package being created by Vox Telepreneur will create a simplified, uncapped offering designed for small businesses and consumers, and sold through our network of more than 4,000 dealers.

MWeb must be applauded for making some heavy investments in infrastructure, which have allowed it to offer uncapped bandwidth to the market. Yet the degree to which Vox, MWeb and every other player in the market can cut their tariffs is frustratingly highly constrained by Telkom.

Telkom still owns the local loop – that last mile of copper wire that reaches into residential and business premises. Despite years of promises from the industry regulator, Icasa, the local loop has still not been freed up for all service providers to use.

That means ISPs still pay heavily for the right to use a facility that was funded by taxpayers in the first place. Since access to the local loop can account for up to 90% of the fees ISPs charge their customers, further significant price cuts can only be unleashed when the regulator finally delivers on its promise to unbundle the local loop.

Uncapped internet access is the way the market has to go. It’s what consumers want and expect and it’s what they do overseas. But it’s ridiculous that ISPs are providing these price reductions while Telkom, which has all the infrastructure and is clearly in the best position to drive down prices, is happy to let the private sector lead the way. Imagine the cost cuts that would ensue if South Africa really enjoyed full competition in the market.

The message to our telecommunications regulator is clear: nothing is more effective than letting the free market determine pricing. It is imperative that Icasa’s plans to liberate the industry are accelerated, since local loop unbundling and number portability will let us unlock further price cuts.”

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/broadband/11840.html

Let the Broadband wars.......... BEGIN!

More come to the party :cheers:

Afrihost uncapped here next week

Afrihost is set to take the battle to MWEB with its uncapped offering next week

The Internet has been buzzing since Thursday morning about new uncapped ADSL offerings after MWEB announced that they are offering subscribers uncapped ADSL services from R219 per month.

Many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) responded quickly, including Openweb which is reselling MWEB’s services at the same price and Vox Telecom which undercut MWEB’s bundled uncapped ADSL prices.

Many consumers have asked what Afrihost, the company which started the per-GB price war late last year, will do in response to MWEB’s announcement, and their subscribers will not be disappointed.

Afrihost CEO Gian Visser today said that they will definitely respond to MWEB’s offerings, and that consumers can expect services from them next week which will match or better MWEB’s pricing.

Afrihost sales director Greg Payne added that he believes that uncapped ADSL at these rates is sustainable, but that a substantial user base is needed to make the business model work. “Basically, with this model, you have certain users subsidising other users. As long as you can control the shaping you can still give a decent service to the majority of your users,” said Payne.

Consumers can expect to start purchasing the Afrihost uncapped ADSL services from Tuesday next week.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11843.html

I'm very interested to see how Web Africa, Axxess, iBurst and other well-established ISP's respond to this.

Web Africa recently reduced their prices (rather disappointingly), but did set up a local Steam server and announced connections to their gaming servers won't use any cap.

That's all redundant now with uncapped offerings suddenly becoming the norm...

:lol:

MTN cuts its out-of-bundle data prices by up to 84%; Launches ‘1 day uncapped’ product (http://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/11844.html)

I'm very interested to see how Web Africa, Axxess, iBurst and other well-established ISP's respond to this.

Web Africa recently reduced their prices (rather disappointingly), but did set up a local Steam server and announced connections to their gaming servers won't use any cap.

That's all redundant now with uncapped offerings suddenly becoming the norm...

I want to see what those fools Telkom are going to offer as an ISP! They the only ISP that can afford to be the cheapest, but Im guessing they wont....

Telkom will probably never be as competitive as these other players.

They rely on the ignorance of the large portion of the population.

Well keep in mind that Mweb are the country's largest ISP...so if their prices are significantly lower than Telkom's, Telkom may struggle to sign up new customers.

Telkom throw their name into the mix (http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11848.html)

This is fun to watch :lol:

(Thanks EduardSA)

Yay!! It's soooo cheap! My dad is considering upgrading to "Uncapped All-inclusive 4096kbps: R899" but he's waiting to see what our ISP is going to offer..

unfortunately i cant benefit from any of this as my building doesnt offer the adsl line function for some reason... will this help push down the mobile internet prices too?

Telkom will probably never be as competitive as these other players.

They rely on the ignorance of the large portion of the population.

They are suffering... landline penetration has fallen from 39% to 16% of the population in the past 8 years

That they are...

BUT they're focussing on the Enterprise market, much like Neotel.. because thats where the big revenues are.....

It honestly wouldn't surprise me to see that in 10 years time the wired infrastructure in this country is almost non-existant...

As for this driving down the mobile prices, it might.. but not in the near term unfortunately.

Yay!! It's soooo cheap! My dad is considering upgrading to "Uncapped All-inclusive 4096kbps: R899" but he's waiting to see what our ISP is going to offer..

What ISP are you with? If it's Web Africa, don't hold your breath (according to the CEO himself).

unfortunately i cant benefit from any of this as my building doesnt offer the adsl line function for some reason... will this help push down the mobile internet prices too?

Yep, you'll notice on the previous page MTN have reduced their prices. Vodacom will probably follow suit. And Cell C is planning on entering the market too, so they'll probably bring something low-cost to the table.

Considering wireless is SA's most popular option, but ADSL is a more reliable technology overall, I would expect the mobile networks to try to retain customers and sign up new customers through price reductions, as ADSL just got a whole lot more appealing price-wise.

It honestly wouldn't surprise me to see that in 10 years time the wired infrastructure in this country is almost non-existant...

I doubt it hey...many wireless ISP's are in the process of building their own wired networks since those restrictions were lifted. iBurst, for example, have ADSL on the cards. Vodacom and MTN are now providing ADSL to businesses too.

I think that once internet penetration in the country grows and people start moving away from using their connections for Facebook and email alone, and instead start using more latency-specific applications, for example, people will begin to demand the benefits of wired networks.

unfortunately i cant benefit from any of this as my building doesnt offer the adsl line function for some reason... will this help push down the mobile internet prices too?

MTN already put through some thing last week.

:banana:
Afrihost uncapped pricing revealed


Afrihost unveils its uncapped ADSL offerings, undercutting MWEB’s pricing

The local broadband environment has been a hive of activity after MWEB’s announcement on Thursday morning that it is now offering subscribers uncapped ADSL services from R219 per month.

Many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) responded quickly, including Openweb which is reselling MWEB’s services at the same price and Vox Telecom which undercut MWEB’s bundled uncapped ADSL prices.

Many consumers have asked what Afrihost, the ISP which started the per-GB price war late last year, will do in response to MWEB’s announcement, and their subscribers will not be disappointed.

Afrihost today announced that it has developed its own uncapped ADSL services, with pricing which compares favourably against other offerings in the market.
Afrihost has launched three data-only uncapped offerings, with the following pricing:


Uncapped ADSL 384 Kbps: R197
Uncapped ADSL 512 Kbps: R297
Uncapped ADSL 4 Mbps: R497

According to Afrihost Sales Director Greg Payne their uncapped offering is sustainable, and users can expect good service levels from them. “With an uncapped model you have certain users subsidising other users, and as long as you can control the shaping you can still give a decent service to the majority of your users,” said Payne.

"When we launched our R29 per GB offer almost six months ago, we knew that South African users craved more affordable ADSL. At the time, most ISPs charged around R70 per GB (and many still do) so our move really shook up the ISP industry," said Gian Visser, CEO at Afrihost. "But we knew that many users wanted more. Over the past few months, we have been testing an uncapped product, which we are now ready to introduce to the market."

Afrihost is surprised that another ISP has beaten it to the punch with an affordable uncapped ADSL offering, but is now ready to respond with a set of products that are now the cheapest on the market, added Visser. "Our intention when we introduced our R29 offer was to put pressure on the incumbents to lower their prices, and I think we can safely say that we have achieved that goal," said Visser.

“Initially we are only making the Uncapped 4096 kbps package available so that we can comprehensively test our Uncapped performance,” said Visser. “The Uncapped 512 and Uncapped 386 will be available for purchase as soon as we've finished monitoring the Uncapped 4096 performance.”


http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11859.html

YES! just signed up, cant wait to not worry about cap. Afrihost ftw

I'm sticking with MWeb as they are the ones we have to thank for all of this :)

And it'll be more convenient after our 3 months free are up haha.

ye true, but afrihost got the ball rolling with their R29/gb. I was still paying a fortune with mweb for 13.5gb cap

That's why we're keeping our 2gig AfriHost account for emergencies or the like :)

On another note, I see AfriHost have an uncapped 8192Kbps line listed as "Coming Soon" for R997/month. Indicative of Telkom's looming ADSL speed upgrades, perhaps?

Ye I also saw that. I think they're testing it out with 4mbps users in some areas, hopefully soon it will be a reality. Finally, it's like the flood gates have just opened.

8 Mbps uncapped ADSL
23 March, 2010

Affordable uncapped ADSL offerings have hit South Africa, and some ISPs are already preparing for 8 Mbps uncapped ADSL

An uncapped ADSL price war has erupted after MWEB announced their affordable uncapped ADSL services on Thursday last week.
Since then Vox Telecom – through @lantic - and Afrihost launched their own uncapped offerings, undercutting the price levels set by MWEB’s uncapped rates.

All of these Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are offering 384 Kbps, 512 Kbps and 4 Mbps uncapped ADSL services, but questions started emerging whether consumers can expect 8 Mbps uncapped offerings when Telkom starts upgrading their broadband speeds.

Telkom said earlier this year that they are planning to bump up their top ADSL speeds from 4 Mbps to at least 8 Mbps (and even 10 Mbps or 12 Mbps depending on trial results) in the next few weeks.

8 Mbps uncapped ADSL
Afrihost has already launched details about their future 8 Mbps uncapped ADSL service. The ISP revealed that it will offer an uncapped ‘8192 Kbps’ service at R997 per month.

MWEB CEO Rudi Jansen said that consumers can definitely expect an 8 Mbps uncapped offering from them when Telkom starts upgrading their current 4 Mbps ADSL lines.

Jansen added that an 8 Mbps uncapped service will rely on infrastructure upgrades and high bandwidth allocations, but assured customers that that MWEB will do what is needed to ensure high service levels.
SAINET said that they are currently in an assessment phase with regards to 8Mbps ADSL to determine the impact on their IPConnect (IPC) link from Telkom.

According to Marius Oberholzer, CEO of IPINX which supplies SAINET with their IPC based ADSL service, their IPC connection is currently the biggest contention point on their ADSL network.

Telkom has not committed to an 8 Mbps ADSL upgrade date yet, but the company did say that it hopes to start doing the first set of speed upgrades in April/May.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11876.html

Vodacom stunned after MTN’s OOB data price cuts?
23 March, 2010

Vodacom won’t commit to price cuts after MTN slashed their Out-of-Bundle data rates

MTN on Friday revealed that they are slashing the Out-of-Bundle (OOB) data rates on their broadband data bundles by up to 84%.
The cellular operator is also introducing two new data products aimed at the lower end of the market: A ‘1 day unlimited’ service and a time-based data product.

MTN SA head Karel Pienaar (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?210096-Karel-Pienaar) explained that these price reductions are made possible by the company’s continual telecoms infrastructure development in South Africa, and that consumers can expect more of the same as the company’s projects start to come online.

This move by MTN also sends a strong message to Vodacom that they can expect MTN to challenge them as the leading broadband provider in the country. Pienaar made it clear that MTN plans to be the broadband leader in South Africa, jokingly saying that “The guy with the most IP packets on its network wins.”

Vodacom is expected to respond to MTN’s recent announcement in the near future, but their immediate response smacks of a company caught unawares.

Vodacom gave the bland PR response: “Vodacom will ensure its offerings are competitive and are constantly looking at ways to improve its value offerings.” This generic, cure-all statement may indicate that there is not much else Vodacom can say at this stage.

Unless Vodacom is content with relinquishing market share to MTN in the long run it is imperative that they either match or better MTN’s OOB rates.
And with Cell C planning to throw its hat into the ring, with its own mobile broadband offerings later this year, the wireless broadband market may just see another price war akin to the early 2007 squaring off between the mobile giants.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/11880.html

Uncapped ADSL: R199 per month
24 March, 2010


Internet Solutions’ uncapped ADSL accounts start to enter the market at very aggressive pricing

MWEB’s cost-effective pricing set the cat among the pigeons last week when it launched an uncapped offering for R219 per month.

Since then Vox Telecom and Afrihost launched their own uncapped offerings undercutting MWEB’s pricing on bundled uncapped services and data-only uncapped accounts respectively.

Imagine has now unveiled its Internet Solutions based uncapped ADSL services, also undercutting MWEB’s pricing. Imagine has two uncapped ADSL offerings:


384k IS Basic Uncapped ADSL: R199
1024k-4096k IS Basic Uncapped ADSL: R499

“The consensus is that IS have more than surpassed their counterparts for price and the new Uncapped ADSL products are considered great value for money. Finally Uncapped ADSL that won't break the bank,” says the Imagine website.

“Watch out though as it's a shaped product that will see your p2p and newgroups working but slower than your full line speed.”

"IS has such a reliable network that it's fantastic to see a very compeitive response to the new ADSL pricing. We're very excited to see how this will now change the face of South African internet,” says Peter Pedrick, business development manager at Imagine IPS.

Pedrick said that he expects Internet Solutions to release their Acceptable Usage Policy (AUP) later today.

Both the 384 Kbps and 4 Mbps uncapped services are available immediately from Imagine: http://www.imagine.co.za/home/uncapped-is.html

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11888.html

A small question. Currently I don't have internet at home since I never thought about paying the ridiculous prices ISP's use to offer. Now with the better prices what would be the best option to take. This is basically just to hook up my PS3 and game and do some downloads. I know the 4mb option would be best, but would the other options suffice. I still the paying R500 for a 4mb line is stiff since I have other bills to pay.

Ideally, you'd get an unshaped 4Mbps connection. That would, however, mean paying for a 4Mbps Business product if we are to use MWeb as an example.

I game perfectly fine on a shaped 384Kbps line, though. We are upgrading to 512Kbps next month, as things start to get a little slow if I'm gaming and someone else is browsing the internet, or I want to make use of something like TeamSpeak or some other VOIP application.

So, in summary, a normal 512Kbps uncapped product should be fine :)

^^ Cool thanks. Not much of an online gamer, more old school single player guy. I basically just need it to download some demos etc. or browse content on the store.

384Kbps will be fine then, but obviously you'll be waiting quite a bit for your downloads.

MTN already put through some thing last week.

yes but it does not effect the start up and monthly prices, it is only your out of cap data is cheaper than it was...hardly means jack to me that

people play games online? i thought it was just gambling feeding our bunnies of this world...

:lol: Does World of Warcraft and its 12.5 million players who fork over a monthly fee of $14.99 to play it not ring a bell? ;)

:lol: Does World of Warcraft and its 12.5 million players who fork over a monthly fee of $14.99 to play it not ring a bell? ;)

I made a resolution that if I ever get addicted to WoW my family should take me to a vet and put me down.

Then play Guild Wars, Aion, or something else :D No death that way ;)

PS3 = free internet playing fun :D

Let me re-phrase that: If I get addicted to any MMORPG my family should take me to the vet and put me down. I would still like to have a social life

Pfft, those are over-rated ;)

Quite the rip off if you ask me.

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iBurst launches student broadband package
25 March, 2010


Broadband provider pilots new student package with the University of Stellenbosch
iBurst has launched its pre-paid student package to all University of Stellenbosch students this week, aiming to bring “affordable broadband access to campuses across South Africa”.


The iBurst network integrates with the University network to give students access to both the Internet and University resources. “This initiative is aimed at students working off-campus who need to access the university resources to complete their work,” iBurst said in a press statement.
The iBurst starter pack costs R999 and includes an iBurst Wireless USB modem, and 30MB of data. Students can then top up their bandwidth with Student Prepaid vouchers which cost R100, giving them the choice of 5GB University access, or 1GB general Internet access, or a combination of both.

“iBurst has essentially lowered its bandwidth costs to R0.10 per megabyte for general Internet use and R0.02 per megabyte for university sites so students will use the bandwidth they buy according to what sites they visit,” said iBurst.

“The Internet and Web based e-learning tools greatly support learning in our universities, and many students are pursuing studies in fields requiring regular access to campus computer resources for experiments or system modelling,” says Jannie van Zyl, CEO of iBurst.

“We wanted to help students and educators by providing a solution that improves access specifically in the tertiary learning environment, which is linked by TENET, the tertiary education network that connects all related sites and online tools.”

If the pilot proves to be successful in Stellenbosch, iBurst plans to replicate its model across as many higher education institutions as possible.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/wireless/11911.html

Uncapped ADSL: R199 per month
24 March, 2010


Internet Solutions’ uncapped ADSL accounts start to enter the market at very aggressive pricing

MWEB’s cost-effective pricing set the cat among the pigeons last week when it launched an uncapped offering for R219 per month.

Since then Vox Telecom and Afrihost launched their own uncapped offerings undercutting MWEB’s pricing on bundled uncapped services and data-only uncapped accounts respectively.

Imagine has now unveiled its Internet Solutions based uncapped ADSL services, also undercutting MWEB’s pricing. Imagine has two uncapped ADSL offerings:


384k IS Basic Uncapped ADSL: R199
1024k-4096k IS Basic Uncapped ADSL: R499

“The consensus is that IS have more than surpassed their counterparts for price and the new Uncapped ADSL products are considered great value for money. Finally Uncapped ADSL that won't break the bank,” says the Imagine website.

“Watch out though as it's a shaped product that will see your p2p and newgroups working but slower than your full line speed.”

"IS has such a reliable network that it's fantastic to see a very compeitive response to the new ADSL pricing. We're very excited to see how this will now change the face of South African internet,” says Peter Pedrick, business development manager at Imagine IPS.

Pedrick said that he expects Internet Solutions to release their Acceptable Usage Policy (AUP) later today.

Both the 384 Kbps and 4 Mbps uncapped services are available immediately from Imagine: http://www.imagine.co.za/home/uncapped-is.html

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11888.html

I'm with internet solutions ;) :eek::eek:

How much does it cost for all inclusive?

What ISP are you with? IS are a provider...ISP's resell their product.

but 199, hellkom will still charge you R175 for line rental.

That's exactly what MWeb are hoping to change :)

Broadband Prices: what more should be done?
24 March, 2010


Uncapped ADSL is only the beginning in the fight for more affordable broadband in South Africa, says MWEB CEO

MWEB CEO Rudi Jansen (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?212663-Rudi-Jansen) says he is smiling ear to ear after seeing the effect the launch of affordable uncapped ADSL services had on the local broadband market.
MWEB surprised the market last week when it launched its new uncapped ADSL offerings starting at R219 a month. Numerous Internet Service Providers responded to MWEB’s pricing in the days that followed, including Internet Solutions, Vox Telecom and Afrihost.
Pricing currently ranges between R200 per month for an uncapped 384 Kbps service and R540 per month for an uncapped 4 Mbps offering.
Only the beginning
This pricing brings South Africa closer to international standards in terms of broadband prices, but Jansen makes it clear that this is merely a first step in making broadband more affordable.
Jansen said that a lot more must be achieved in both the ADSL and wireless broadband arena, including:


Putting pressure on Telkom to bring down ADSL access (aka ADSL line rental) prices. The combination of ADSL access costs and analogue line rental for a DSL384 connection now exceeds the cost of an uncapped ADSL account.
Allow customers to purchase ADSL lines without being forced to pay for analogue line rental (and hence a phone service) from Telkom.
The reduction of Telkom’s wholesale IPConnect (and planned IPStream) pricing. This service is the only way in which ISPs can offer their own ADSL offerings, but the high cost means that it is currently the biggest expense to ISPs, exceeding even the cost of international bandwidth.
Increase the amount of international bandwidth and the affordability of bandwidth in South Africa.
Encourage open peering between all the ISPs, including large telecoms players like MTN, Vodacom, Telkom and Internet Solutions. Open peering can significantly improve the total cost of bandwidth provisioning and hence wholesale ADSL provisioning to ISPs, and peering should therefore be encouraged or even forced.
Wireless network providers like MTN, Vodacom, Cell C and iBurst should open their networks for ISPs to deliver services over. Access to Telkom’s network through a wholesale model is one of the main reasons for the more aggressive ADSL prices, and Jansen is confident that the same will happen in the wireless market if we start to see Wireless Local Loop Unbundling (LLU) or at least a good wholesale model which will encourage competition.

Jansen said that consumers can expect MWEB to be at the forefront of making Internet and broadband access more affordable to consumers. “For us it is a big lobby group which we want to carry on with and rally the support of all South Africans that we can change the Internet [in SA] for one and for all,” said Jansen.

“This is only the beginning. We have bigger plans than this,” Jansen concluded.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/broadband/11893.html

Axxess launches uncapped ADSL for R196
26 March, 2010

Axxess joins the uncapped ADSL war by launching the most affordable offerings yet

Axxess has joined numerous Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in responding to MWEB’s uncapped ADSL offerings announced last week.
Axxess is reselling Internet Solutions’ (IS) uncapped ADSL services which started emerging in the market this week. Axxess is selling two basic uncapped products:


384Kbps [192Kbps upload] R196.00
4096kbps [512Kbps upload] R496.00

This is currently the lowest price in the market, undercutting Afrihost’s R197 for an uncapped 384Kbps ADSL account. Axxess is also slightly cheaper than other IS resellers which typically charge R199 and R499 for 384Kbps and 4Mbps accounts respectively.
These prices further undercut MWEB’s prices of R219 for a 384Kbps account and R519 for a 4Mbps account.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11925.html

As for us who do not use ADSL its bitter sweet. The price wars are great for the fixed line users as for the rest of us with wireless we just have to suck our thumbs and hope that someday someone will remember us and offer us something real, till then the happy ones are the fixed line users.

people play games online? i thought it was just gambling feeding our bunnies of this world...

Just try it and playing game will never be the same ;)

I play mostly first person shooters like Vegas Rainbow six and I tell its madness and all things can wait when Im playing online. The downside has been the the uploading speeds, its just not funny playing against the Europeans who use cable and it takes some mini seconds before you can get your bullets accross the field and by then those guys would have terminated you. Overall the experience is good.

As for us who do not use ADSL its bitter sweet. The price wars are great for the fixed line users as for the rest of us with wireless we just have to suck our thumbs and hope that someday someone will remember us and offer us something real, till then the happy ones are the fixed line users.

Is getting DSL not an option for you?

Is getting DSL not an option for you?

Isn't that slower? I can cope with not less than 250kbps and below that is pure surfing pain.

Isn't that slower? I can cope with not less than 250kbps and below that is pure surfing pain.

Lol no, the entrance speed is 384Kbps. That is followed by 512Kbps and 4Mbps packages.

Telkom are supposedly going to start upgrading 384Kbps and 512Kbps to 1Mbps, and 4Mbps to 8-12Mbps depending on their areas starting from next month :)

Some companies offer over 20Mbps through bridging, but of course that way too pricey for the average consumer and is meant for consumers.

Those are fast speeds I should say, unfortunately I live in a place where ADSL and DSN connection is not available, telkom only offers dial-up connection so we use wireless and and you know what we pay.
I truly wish those guys could consider the prices as wireless is more accessible to many.

I still think the biggest killer, is the Telkom line rental each month. Having to fork out cash for a rental service without really receiving a service is a rip-off. Also, the fact that your ISP would monitor your activity according to prevent you from supposedly abusing the system is BS. This is directly related to the line rental or the sheer cost of having to fork out $$$$$ for a fast line.

Imagine an internet wherby I can stream music, movies etc. I would probably then kick the TV out (Hulu anyone), and kick the SABC in the crotch at the same time.

:cheers:

Uncapped ADSL: R159 per month
29 March, 2010

MyISP surprises the market with an uncapped ADSL offering for R159 per month; also undercuts competitors on their 4 Mbps service

MWEB surprised the market two weeks ago with the launch of their affordable uncapped offerings starting from R219 per month.

Since then the ADSL ISP market has seen the launch of numerous competing uncapped offerings, with prices dropping to as low as R196 per account.

The flood of uncapped ADSL offerings at more and more competitive rates however does not seem to be abating. MyISP (http://www.myisp.co.za/uncapped.htm), well known for their affordable capped ADSL services, have now launch the most affordable uncapped offering of them all.

“Today we are launching our 384 Kbps uncapped service for R159 per month, and our 4 Mbps service for R459. We believe that these services offer probably some of the best deals on the market today,” said MyISP Director Leon Gerber.

“MWEB has done the South African ISP industry and the consumer a huge favour - we are now moving towards international standards,” says Gerber.
Gerber stresses that these services are shaped, and are not necessarily the best offering for all types of users. “For relatively heavy users who want peer to peer services plus fast download speeds our 10 Gig service at R200 pm is still unbeatable value,” said Gerber.

Gerber added that their uncapped services are most suited for households where parents often find that they can’t control their kids’ appetite for data. “Uncapped accounts may be a suitable solution for this environment.”

Gerber added that he is confident that MyISP will have an uncapped service for under a R100 before the end of the month.

The MyISP offering undercuts MWEB’s R219 per month for an uncapped DSL384 account, and is also more affordable than Afrihost’s R197 per month and Axxess’ R196 per month.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11931.html

This means just about R1000 for line rental, 4mb ADSL line and uncapped data. Awesome times! Lets see what Telkom dishes out.

Telkom must be shitting themselves..........well not really, I think they'll also launch one in the region of R180-R220 excluding line rental but will offer a discount on it if you have them as an ISP

Telkom considering DSL384, DSL512 speed upgrades
29 March, 2010

4 Mbps ADSL subscribers likely to be upgraded free of charge to 10 Mbps; 384 Kbps and 512 Kbps ADSL upgrades also possible

Over the last few months Telkom has been trialing their new 8 Mbps ADSL service – which included 10 Mbps and 12 Mbps tests – and according to unconfirmed feedback the pilot was a great success.

Speculation suggests that Telkom will start upgrading 4 Mbps ADSL subscribers to 10 Mbps (http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11929.html) before the 2010 World Cup, and that Telkom plans to officially launch their "up to 10Mbps" broadband campaign in June.
Telkom recently informed some of its staff members that they will start seeing ADSL synchronization rates of 10 Mbps on certain accounts despite the fact that these speeds have not been implemented yet. This gives a strong indication that Telkom has indeed decided to upgrade its ‘fastest’ ADSL subscribers to 10 Mbps instead of 8 Mbps as previously stated.

While Telkom’s “Fastest DSL” subscribers stand to benefit from the planned speed upgrades, the company has not said anything about its DSL384 (Fast) and DSL512 (Faster) subscribers yet.

One source close to Telkom said that the company is looking into the feasibility of upgrading their DSL384 and DSL512 subscribers, but Telkom would not confirm or deny this speculation.

Telkom did however say that it is assessing the results of its ADSL trials which were recently conducted, and that the assessment of the results will determine whether the company will upgrade its lower speed ADSL subscribers.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11936.html

Just on this issue atm..

Afrihost are currently being shafted on the forums.... They've changed their TOS from 200gbs to literally hundreds of Gbs, to 60Gbs and it now seems to be 30Gbs....

Lmfao...I'm sorry but I can't help but lol at all those people that were going on about AfriHost > Mweb! :lol:

Yeah..

Even though I'm one of the ppl being "throttled" by Afrihost....

My biggest issue is the lack of communication and the misinformation being dished out by them, which is why I'm cancelling the account.

I don't know what possessed them to think that they could suddenly restrict users so heavily without a huge backlash.

^^ What are they restricting bandwith from users now? I though it was suppose to be uncapped

They're throttling accounts to a stupid degree...

My account is/was basically unusable.

sh*t this make neotel look like kak cant wait for the llu were getting there guys :)

wits architecture department ... 1mb per sec(after 3) for a usa site think that's equivalent to a 10mn adsl line
on weekends it 4mb per sec download speed which is equal to 40mb adsl line
daily cap is about 4gigs then ur throttled to 10kbs per sec
http://www.speedtest.net/result/765999487.png (http://www.speedtest.net)
ps: u can use 4 pcs at once so u can downloaded lots of stuff i usually do

DAILY cap of 4gigs at WITS?

Jees... only 4gigs on campus?!?!!?!

I think I need to start studying again :D

Jees... only 4gigs on campus?!?!!?!

I think I need to start studying again :D

lolm believe me you dont need to download anything, Ive been to WITS, TUKS & RAU the LANs got everything you want, from music, to series, to movies & games, just make sure you carry a big enough Hard Drive :lol:

Free Internet after midnight
30 March, 2010

iBurst launches ‘free Internet after midnight trial’; free to all iBurst subscribers

iBurst (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/forumdisplay.php?97-iBurst-Wireless-ADSL-and-HSDPA) is to launch ‘free Internet access’ between midnight and 8am to active iBurst Wireless customers during a three month trial to start 1 April 2010.

The trial is open to both contract and month-to-month subscribers on all iBurst Wireless packages. Subscribers will essentially be able to use the Internet ‘free’ between midnight and 8am, with all traffic being zero-rated and therefore not counting towards their monthly bandwidth allocation.
This service will be of particular value to users who can schedule their online backups or large file transfers during the 8 hour zero rated window.

This service is initially being introduced as a free trial to test market viability, and ensure that iBurst is able to offer a good customer experience, before officially launching it as a value added service. The launch is set for July this year.

“We are always looking for ways to improve the affordability and accessibility of our broadband products,” says iBurst CEO Jannie van Zyl (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?208401-Jannie-van-Zyl).
“This is a value add for people who are online late at night. With many users performing specific functions at this time, we felt there was an opportunity to reduce the cost of access even more for our customers and give them unmatched value in the wireless broadband space. Already the most cost effective wireless broadband provider, iBurst is working hard to deliver cheaper, better solutions to those who don¹t have access to wireline systems.”

Van Zyl added that this ‘free after hours’ Internet service will give iBurst Wireless subscribers an uncapped experience after midnight to allow them to do batch uploads or downloads, backups, late night surfing or gaming sessions.

According to iBurst this is only the first of a number of initiatives which consumers can expect from them over the next three months.
“We are launching even more services to provide wireless Internet services at wireline-like pricing,” said Van Zyl. “In addition, exciting new wire-line services are on the cards.”

“iBurst has consistently differentiated itself in the wireless space by bringing its pricing down to stay in line with wireline technologies. We want to set our price, and how we deliver the services, so that it is easier to compare iBurst wireless with the fixed line services, although our true competitors in this space are the mobile carriers with 3G,” Van Zyl concluded.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/wireless/11951.html

A nice summary of all the new uncapped deals and their prices (http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11935.html)

^^thanks for that, still no word from helkom though. They should really do away with line rental some how, lol

Vodacom upgrades customers to 14.4 Mbps

01 April, 2010

Vodacom surprises with 14.4 Mbps HSPA upgrades for prepaid and contract customers

In February this year Vodacom CEO Pieter Uys announced that Vodacom will upgrade all their data customers to 7.2 Mbps at the end of March. Previously only Broadband Advanced subscribers had access to this speed.
Vodacom yesterday confirmed that all its customers – contract, top-up and prepaid – have in fact been provisioned for access to 14.4 Mbps.

“Customers who use a 14.4 Mbps-capable device and who are within a 14.4 Mbps coverage area have access to 14.4 Mbps HSDPA,” said Nicolene Visser, Vodacom’s Executive Head of Corporate Communications.

Visser however points out that the company’s Broadband Advanced package, which previously had the benefit of higher speeds to subscribers, will not fall away.

“This package [Broadband Advanced] is still available - customers who subscribe to this data option benefit from paying the same in-bundle and out-of-bundle data rates in accordance with the data package option they subscribe to - a very convenient option for high data users,” said Visser.
Uys previously said that Vodacom plans to have the full Vodacom network 14.4 Mbps enabled for the World Cup.

The Vodacom CEO added that around 100 sites will be 14.4 Mbps enabled by the end of March, but highlighted that transmission capacity remains a significant challenge in the rollout of these higher speeds.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/broadband/11973.html

MWEB upgrades ADSL network
01 April, 2010

MWEB acquires additional bandwidth and bumps up SAT3 capacity for added redundancy

Two weeks ago MWEB surprised the market with its affordable uncapped offerings, starting from R219 for an uncapped DSL384 account.

The response from consumers has been very positive regarding MWEB’s uncapped service, and according to Derek Hershaw, CEO of MWEB ISP, the demand for their uncapped ADSL offerings has been ‘incredible’.

Hershaw said that their network is currently performing as expected and that they are scaling it as planned. To ensure that adequate bandwidth is available MWEB however recently upgraded both their local and international network portions.

“We have cut over our IPC [IPConnect] from Metro-Ethernet to Next Generation SDH, with additional bandwidth as well,” said Hershaw.
According to an MWEB notice the upgrade allows MWEB to easily increase bandwidth capacity, and promises big improvements in speeds, ‘especially for those who are on the shaped package’.

It is however not only straight sailing for MWEB after launching their own ADSL network. Last weekend the company had a failure on their fibre link between Midrand (where their Seacom bandwidth terminates) and their data centre at Victory Park.

“In fact, the line got washed away due to flooding. The redundant link also failed so on Sunday morning our international bandwidth was severely constrained for about 6 hours,” said Hershaw.

MWEB however took the opportunity to improve their network. “We have a new redundant link in place and we’ve taken additional capacity on our SAT3 bandwidth so we’re confident now that this won’t be an issue again,” said Hershaw.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/telecoms/11974.html

Has anyone tried calling the Mweb call centre? It rings, rings, rings, rings, rings and effin' rings! They screwed up my "All Inclusive" online order, now I have to deal with them telephonically. I've literally sat on the phone for 50 minutes over the last 2 days trying to get through to a consultant, and haven't spoken a word yet.

Surely they should've beefed up their call centre staff before promoting the uncapped ADSL like crazy?

They've apparently had to double their call centre staff since launching the product :lol:

I think people want uncapped interwebs!

I don't get it? If you're an Mweb customer do I get upgraded automatically?

No you won't...


You will have to request to be upgraded to uncapped...

If you are already with MWeb and you're paying more for your package than the uncapped equivalent of your speed is, then you'll automatically be migrated to an uncapped plan.

If you're paying slightly to a whole lot more less, you'll have to request that they upgrade your plan :)

does myisp's R459/month for 4Mbps include everything or are there hidden costs?

There are "hidden" costs..

as in your phone line rental, and the ADSL line rental..

you're looking at about R1000pm all told.

Thanks Telkom, for that :)

Thanks guys :)

I just got switched over to UNCAPPED :banana:

Congrats! What did you end up getting?

Uncapped ADSL 384kbps :( Which is weird, cuz I thought i had 512kbps this whole time lol. Will plan to upgrade it, but im not in a hurry since I haven't had any problems with the 384kbps.... obviously as i didnt even realize my speed was so low till now :P

I also heard lines will get upgraded some time soon by Telkom, so I will be bumped up to 512 kbps anyway, but that depends on when Telkom finishes their line testing. So not keeping my fingers crossed....

Trying to convince the boss that mweb uncapped 4mb at R520 a month is worth getting instead of paying R850 a month for 12 gigs :bash:

Sweet, sweet competition :cheers:

-----

Uncapped, unshaped business ADSL for R489
06 April, 2010

OpenWeb launches business class unshaped ADSL product for under R500 per month; more ISPs launch low cost uncapped services

OpenWeb recently launched their new 384k uncapped, unshaped business ADSL service priced at R489 per month. This service includes 5 static IP addresses and a rented router, and bandwidth is provisioned on Internet Solutions’ fibre backbone.

According to OpenWeb’s Keoma Wright the uncapped business accounts are only available on a 12 month contract, and come with a once off setup fee of R929. This account has no limits or thresholds.

More fresh ADSL offerings launched
Other ISPs have also launched new ADSL offerings, including Redwill ISP and SAOL.

Redwill ISP joined numerous other service providers in starting to sell Internet Solutions’ uncapped consumer ADSL accounts. Redwill priced its 384 Kbps offering at R195 per month while its 512 Kbps costs R279 per month and its 4096 Mbps R489 per month.

Redwill further announced that it has extended it’s R24 per GB capped ADSL offering until end of April 2010.

Internet Solutions’ own retail ISPs Plugg has also launched an uncapped consumer offering at R199 per month for a 384 Kbps service and R499 for a 4 Mbps offering.

SAOL in turn has launched their bundled ADSL services which include ADSL access (aka ADSL line rental) and 1 GB of data at the following prices:


384 Kbps line: R139 for the first 6 months, R152 thereafter
512 Kbps line: R299 for the first 6 months, R325 thereafter
4 Mbps line: R399 for the first 6 months, R415 thereafter

SAOL is offering unshaped top-up bandwidth at R29 per GB.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/12002-Uncapped-unshaped-business-ADSL-for-R489.html

Thank you MWEB. I'm lovin 'uncapped' life. Feeling like ive been set free.:banana:

Finally got ours yesterday :cheers:

I feel free too!

I can't wait when we get to be set free :) My dad is still sleeping on it, says he's worried that we'll only spend our time on the net..

Ask him if he'd prefer you to go out and get girls pregnant, assuming you swing that way, or to get hooked on drugs instead :)

More like force me to be the best rugby player like he was :(

Gauteng and the Western Cape start seeing 10Mbps :cheers:

-----

10 Mbps ADSL trial areas revealed
07 April, 2010

List of exchanges which form part of the Telkom 10 Mbps trial revealed; ADSL subscribers report 10 Mbps+ speeds

It recently emerged that Telkom is likely to upgrade its 4 Mbps ADSL subscribers to 10 Mbps (http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11929-Telkom-Mbps-ADSL-preparation.html) instead of the 8 Mbps the company previously trialed.

Telkom has already started upgrading their backend systems to reflect the new ‘10240’ speeds despite the fact that the service is not commercially available yet.

In a recent internal email Telkom said that despite the fact that they have “not yet officially launched the new ‘Fastest’ ADSL (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/forumdisplay.php?79-ADSL-discussions) product as a 10Meg service” they have already enabled their operational software to handle this service “once the announcement has been made.”

Telkom is currently still trialing the new 10 Mbps service to test the throughput and stability of the upgrades. Telkom said that this extended testing period is needed “to ensure that we are able to provide this service to an acceptable standard to our customers”.

Telkom has trialed this new service at various exchanges/DSLAMs in the country, but according to them some of these DSLAMs have already been reverted back to the original configuration – hence 4 Mbps maximum speeds – after the necessary results were obtained.

There are however many DSLAM (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?224942-DSLAM)s which are still 10 Mbps+ enabled due to the trial. The DSLAMs which still form part of the higher speed ADSL trial are based in the following areas: Alberton, Bryanston, Constantia Park, Seapoint, Soutrivier and Waterkloof.

Numerous users have started to report higher speeds on their current ADSL lines. In specific cases Speedtest.net results revealed speeds close to 12 Mbps, a result which suggests that the users were on a 12 Mbps trial at that stage.

Bad news for ADSL (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?224881-ADSL) subscribers falling outside of these areas is that Telkom currently has no plans to expand on the current list of DSLAMs on the trial until the company is ready to offer this service commercially.
Telkom was asked for official feedback about the ADSL trial and planned speed upgrades, but the company did not respond by the time of publication.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/12017-Mbps-ADSL-trial-areas-revealed.html

Ask him if he'd prefer you to go out and get girls pregnant, assuming you swing that way, or to get hooked on drugs instead :)

Yay!!! My dad filled in all the forms to get uncapped internet!! But it only comes into effect next month :(

More like force me to be the best rugby player like he was :(

Your dads Gary Tiechman? :eek2:

Your dads Gary Tiechman? :eek2:

No, and neither of us played rugby. He's rather using me as cheap labour :(

Child exploitation. What are family for if not for cheap labour

Spoiling their children with overseas trips?

I digress, but there are now two 16 year old teenage girls staying at my place for the next few days, my niece and her friend. :runaway:

Think of what you can do... :naughty:

I would not like to go to jail.

Think of what you can do... :naughty:

:ohno: its his niece man! wtf.

^^ That was some Deliverance stuff right there by Johan15 :puke:

:ohno: its his niece man! wtf.

You say it like it's a morally unacceptable thing to do :?

^^ uhm, no comment.

No, and neither of us played rugby. He's rather using me as cheap labour :(

nothing wrong with that

You say it like it's a morally unacceptable thing to do :?

Watch *Deliverance* and then you can decide whether it is morally acceptable.

^ Is it made before 1999?

I am sure you can find a copy on the internet now that you are uncapped: Google Dueling banjos also. So young grasshopper there are much still to be learned. The film is a classic. Burt Reynolds, John Voight etc.

^ Well, there's the matter of it only taking effect in the next month :(

Does anyone know if Mweb will shape your connection like Afrihost does if you torrent?

Yes, accounts are shaped during office hours, and unshaped after hours. But there are no usage thresholds.

when is hellkom releasing their uncapped offers??? :gaah:

When hell freezes over most likely.

Africa.Inx will ‘rival current uncapped ADSL prices’
12 April, 2010

Africa.Inx went live last week; promises to ‘revolutionise the local ISP industry’ and significantly reduce bandwidth rates

The company said that this development is “ushering in a new era of highly competitive connectivity rates, independence and freedom of choice for clients, which will revolutionise the local ISP industry.”

“Since its launch in October 2009 the company has taken the South African ISP industry by storm – offering connectivity to service providers at significantly reduced rates on an internationally recognised, best-practice, fully redundant network,” Africa.Inx said in a press statement.

“By providing a lower cost to entry into the South African ISP industry, Africa.Inx is effectively breaking the stranglehold incumbent telco operators have traditionally held over the market. The company is currently working with smaller-scale ISP providers on a business proposition that can rival recent uncapped ADSL offerings by competitors.

With a number of local players already onboard and the establishment of a fully redundant network running to schedule, Eduard du Plessis (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?225660-Eduard-du-Plessis), Africa.Inx (http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php?225659-Africa.Inx) CEO, states: “Africa.Inx will, without doubt, revolutionise the market, and has been taking great strides since going live on 1 April.”

The company has a number of service partners, including Juniper, BT, Telkom, Neotel, Teraco and international tier-one SPs to ensure that South African and international clients receive a world-class carrier service.
According to Africa.Inx it has employed Juniper standards and technology across the board with the development of its network and has redundancy systems in place for north/south and east/west long-haul circuit failures.
“In order to attain full compliance with international ISP standards, Africa.Inx has developed a fully redundant network. This has been achieved by establishing dual connections into two different London-based tele-housing facilities using the SAT3 and Seacom submarine fibre optic cable systems. As the network terminates into two separate data centres in London, Africa.Inx created two separate data nodes for redundancy.
From these data nodes, the network again connects redundantly into tier-one ISPs and also extends globally from here via international NNI (Network to Network Interface) agreements offering SA-based customers the flexibility to connect their customers’ MPLS networks to almost any location in the world,” the company said.

“Africa.Inx has established two separate data nodes in both of the major business centres in South Africa – namely Johannesburg and Cape Town. These nodes are connected through the newly developed AFRICA.INX metro Ethernet networks, which also provide fibre to the business,” explains Du Plessis.

“This simplifies the process of establishing a cost-effective high-capacity link into the network. Above and beyond the stipulated criteria within our initial roll-out plan, we have also established data nodes in both Port Elizabeth and Durban. Durban is redundantly connected into the two separate data nodes located in Johannesburg, while a similar system has been employed to redundantly connect Port Elizabeth into the Cape Town system.”

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/telecoms/12047-AfricaInx-will-rival-current-uncapped-ADSL-prices.html

Ideally, they should dump 384 kbs line offerings. The minimum line speed for ADSL must be 512, 1mbs, and 4mbs. At the moment the difference in price between the 384 and 512 line is massive. Kinda ripp-off me thinks.

Our uncapped gets activated in 2 days :D

4mbps baby!! :happy: Well, not that it'd make a difference, since we already have 4mbps. Are they still going to upgrade the 4mbps lines to 10/12 mbps free of charge?

They're supposed to. We'll have to wait a bit longer to find out :)

Our uncapped gets activated in 2 days :D

4mbps baby!! :happy: Well, not that it'd make a difference, since we already have 4mbps. Are they still going to upgrade the 4mbps lines to 10/12 mbps free of charge?

remember over 200 gigs and they will throttle you to death. Apparently they not to kind on P2P

OMG, Uncapped!!!!

I feel so free!! Streaming music vids etc.. :D:D:D

@Phil: What? A cap?? 200Gigs? That's not enough :(

What ISP are you with? MWeb? Because MWeb don't shape you for usage...they only shape certain ports during office hours. And then only if you're downloading from torrents will you feel it.

Internet Solutions. They sent us an email to show we've used 0.1 MB so far of our 1000000 Mb cap :crazy:

Shaping is when they "make you slower"?

Sort of..

You can shape specific types of internet applications, so for instance torrents will top at 70kb/s... whereas your normal browsing can still be fullspeed.

From MWeb's Free the Web Facebook page:

Hey fans! We can't hold it in any longer... In the spirit of progress and a demand for a better Internet in South Africa, we're just 1 day away from some really exciting news. So be sure to keep your eyes peeled on our page at around 10:30am tomorrow for the announcement. (We will also be putting up a press release as ...well so that you can catch up on the news in case you missed it) Free The Web!!

I'm really starting to like Mweb...

I know they're still a big corporate, but they're playing by different rules which seems cool.

From MWeb's Free the Web Facebook page:

Hey fans! We can't hold it in any longer... In the spirit of progress and a demand for a better Internet in South Africa, we're just 1 day away from some really exciting news. So be sure to keep your eyes peeled on our page at around 10:30am tomorrow for the announcement. (We will also be putting up a press release as ...well so that you can catch up on the news in case you missed it) Free The Web!!

No more telkom line rentals. Yay

DSTV have an announcement tomorrow also. Maybe something to do with IPTV or bundled Satellite TV + ADSL ?

Things are getting exciting! :D

By the way, SEACOM has another breakage today, so if you're experiencing internet issues - you now know why!

hmmm. sounds like it's gonna be a MWEB/DSTV thing. But this throws me off that theory somewhat:

"In the spirit of progress and a demand for a better Internet in South Africa"

Doesn't sound DSTV/TV-related, but hey? You never know.

Well, now that Super5 Media have announced their new pay TV/internet service incoming, I'm wondering if it doesn't maybe have something to do with them? But they do mentioned that they want to start their own ISP soon, so that in turn throws me off.

It'll probably all turn out to be coincidence and just a load of good news arriving at once haha.

From their FB page:

Yesterday we said there would be an exciting announcement, and following the earlier announcement by DStv, here it is! Today DStv launched DStv On Demand in association with MWEB. This collaboration means that all MWEB ADSL and DStv Premium subscribers will never have to miss their favourite DStv shows ever again - AND they can enjoy it online absolutely free of charge! Full press release here: http://bit.ly/aXisxY

MWEB Exclusively brings you DStv ON DEMAND

We are proud to announce that we are the first Internet Service Provider in South Africa to offer free DStv ON DEMAND service to our ADSL customers.

MWEB ADSL customers who also subscribe to DStv Premium will be able to catch up on many of DStv’s most popular shows.

What is DStv ON DEMAND?


As an MWEB ADSLcustomer, you now have access to so much more than just superfast Internet.
All MWEB ADSL Customers with a DStv Premium Subscription have exclusive access to DStv ON DEMAND and will be able to download or stream their favourite shows to the computer. Check it out now. (http://ondemand.dstv.com/)
DStv ON DEMAND offers a variety of general entertainment, sport and actuality programming. The programs are available within hours after first being broadcast on DStv and are normally available for viewing for a full 7 days thereafter (may vary on certain titles, check expiry date for confirmation).


*DStv ON DEMAND is available to both Capped and Uncapped ADSL Customers but given the amounts of data consumed we recommend MWEB ADSL Uncapped to enjoy the benefits of DStv ON DEMAND without ever having to worry about your data cap.

What do I need?
To be eligible to enjoy DStv ON DEMAND, you will need:


To be an MWEB ADSL Customer. Sign up for MWEB ADSL now. (https://www.mweb.co.za/adslsignup)
To watch online you will need a PC connected to your MWEB ADSL line and, a DStv Premium subscription, (Note: this service is not available to subscribers of DStv Compact, DStv Select, etc.) Not a DSTV Premium subscriber? Click here (http://www.dstv.com/dstvsa/content/en/sa/get_dstv)
For an optimal viewing experience MWEB recommends a 4mbps connection speed
Registered for DStv ON DEMAND.Register Now. (http://ondemand.dstv.com/Account/Registration/RegisterStep1.aspx?retunUrl=/Help/AboutDStv/Default.aspx)


*DStv ON DEMAND is available to both Capped and Uncapped ADSL Customers but given the amounts of data consumed we recommend MWEB ADSL Uncapped and a 4mbps connection speed to enjoy the benefits of DStv ON DEMAND without ever having to worry about your data cap.

How much does it cost?


DStv ON DEMAND services are currently included in the cost of your DStv Premium subscription.
Get registered now for DStv ON DEMAND (http://ondemand.dstv.com/Account/Registration/RegisterStep1.aspx?retunUrl=/Help/AboutDStv/Default.aspx)

http://www.mweb.co.za/adsl/?p=dstvo

BOOOO DSTV and Mweb. We have had DSTV on demand already online, I could use it right now with webafrica if I wanted to.

The good thing is that DSTV pushed out an update to my HD PVR last night and it now finally has series recording and on demand!

Twas rather anti-climatic :(

was'nt such a big announcement then, well it is but yeah was expecting more.

Don't get too excited...read on first.

-----

MTN launching uncapped mobile broadband
Staff Writer MyBroadband | 18 May, 2010

MTN announces that it is planning an uncapped mobile broadband offering from 1 June

MTN has surprised the market with an announcement that it will be launching new uncapped data packages on 1 June, starting from R749 per month.

MTN said in a statement that its Unlimited Lite package will be available for R749 while its Unlimited Pro package will be available for R1999. Both these new ‘uncapped’ data packages will be launched on 1 June 2010.

The MTN Unlimited Lite package will have a fair use policy of 3GB and the MTN Unlimited Pro package has a fair use policy of 10GB. “After these allowances have been reached, the internet speeds will be reduced to 128kbit/s,” MTN said.

This are the first uncapped mobile broadband offerings in the South African market, and despite the fact that speed will be throttled after a fair use limit is reached it is likely to enjoy take-up among heavy users.

Vodacom has no immediate plans to launch uncapped mobile broadband services, but Vodacom South African MD Shameel Joosub said that consumers can expect Vodacom to remain competitive and offer them competitive value in the broadband space.

http://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/12475-MTN-launching-uncapped-mobile-broadband.html

^^ Ya I read that as well and it felt like a big slap in the face. Hope Vodacom will come out with something better so we can start a mobile broadband war as well :)

I won't hold my breath, but we can hope :)

I asked the guys at MTN

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_c07kMUNjXvY/Svc4HS4lnuI/AAAAAAAABOw/vQZ3jUmNWHY/s400/WhatUpWithThat.bmp

still no reply

Paying that much for internet is sick.

It seems MWeb are on a role :) The prices aren't half bad considering they're aimed at the business market.

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MWEB launches uncapped wireless accounts
20 May, 2010

MWEB has launched its own wireless network, with uncapped 512 Kbps, 1024 Kbps and 4 Mbps services


Following its recent affordable uncapped ADSL offering (http://mybroadband.co.za/news/adsl/11819.html) that shook up the local broadband market, MWEB has announced the launch of its own self-provisioned wireless network offering uncapped wireless access for businesses in greater Johannesburg and Cape Town.

While the industry waits for details on the issuing of WiMAX spectrum, MWEB has already built base stations covering Sandton, Boksburg, Isando (Kempton Park) and Midrand in Johannesburg; and N1 City and the Cape Town CBD in Cape Town.

This footprint will be expanded on an ongoing basis throughout the year. The network will utilize open unlicenced spectrum bands and using Alvarion wireless equipment, will broadcast signal in a 5km radius of the base stations.

Eugene van der Westhuizen, General Manager of New Business Projects at MWEB said that MWEB was very excited about provisioning its own commercial network for the first time.

“With our ECNS licence awarded last year, it is exciting to finally be able to offer Internet access products where we own, manage, service and maintain every aspect of the network and the client interaction,” he said.
“We learnt a lot about managing a network during our successful WiMAX trial (http://mybroadband.co.za/news/Wireless/3370.html) in 2007, and while we wait for the next steps in the awarding of WiMAX spectrum licences, we are pleased to be offering our own commercial product for the first time.”

Ideally suited to small and medium-sized businesses as an alternative to uncapped ADSL, the product, to be called Uncapped Wireless, will suit customers that are hampered by a lack of ADSL capacity in their area, or who have been inconvenienced by the theft of copper cables – a particular problem in the east of Johannesburg.

“Uncapped Wireless is also a true failover option for customers wanting redundancy, without the traditional high costs associated with wireless failover,” MWEB said in a press statement.

Bernard Kur, Head of Product Management and Development at MWEB Business said that three options will be offered – 512kbps 1024kbps and 4096kbps.

“All offerings are uncapped and unshaped for a fixed monthly fee, which includes the cost of the router and wireless hardware needed. The fixed fee will allow businesses to budget accurately, with no need to buy boosters during the month,” he said.

“MWEB Business is the first in the market to offer an uncapped unshaped 4096kbps wireless offering,” said Kur. “Uncapped Wireless will be suitable either as a primary connection or as a fail-over to traditional uncapped ADSL or leased lines. Customers will also be able view usage graphs as well as receive notifications should the link go down.”

To ensure optimal signal strength before installation, MWEB said it will conduct site inspections at clients’ premises to determine the quality of signal that can be received - at no additional cost to the customer.
“Once it has been determined that a client can get good quality signal, a small antenna will be installed at the customer’s premises to receive the wireless signal.”


MWEB Uncapped Business Wireless services are prices as follows:
Uncapped Wireless 512 Kbps - R 1299
Uncapped Wireless 1024 Kbps - R 1999
Uncapped Wireless 4096 Kbps - R 2795
http://mybroadband.co.za/news/wireless/12511-MWEB-launches-uncapped-wireless-accounts.html