Registered Internet Service Providers
Africa Online, Arachnid Design, Cyberplex Africa, Design@7, Ecoweb, E-World, Earth Internet, Global Internet, Goldnet, Harvey Micro Systems (HMS), MANGO, MWEB Zimbabwe, Reliant Computers, Roach Web Design, Taurai Zimbabwe, Telco Internet, Utande Internet Services, Venekera Works Technologies, Webdev, Web Solutions, Yo!Africa, Zambezi Net, ZARNet, Zimbabwe Internet Mail, Zimbabwe Online (ZOL), Zimbabwe Business Network (Zimbiz), Zimlink, ComOne, and PowerTel.
Do you know how many internet providers there are in
What types of services are on offer (broadband, dialup etc)?
To understand the services these 30 ISPs offer, we need to look at the advancements in technology
As an industry, the platforms have advanced from one that offers a mire 28KB to more the 2MB per second in just over 10 years, with more speeds available by the day. The most popular type of connection at the moment is Broadband, which allows even home users, through standard telephone lines, to have speeds reaching 2MB per second. More than 50% of the ISPs offer this service, to both the corporate and the home internet users. All 30 ISPs have a national presence that covers almost every town in the country, through industry synergies that they have formed, creating a level ground, on which “innovation” of service delivery is the only competitive advantage.
The recent discovery of GPRS, allowing Internet Access on Mobile phones, has caused the ISPs to be innovative, with PowerTel addressing the need for Wireless Internet Connection with their PowerCONNECT technology, based Wireless Connectivity. They have Wireless Modems on sale, whose coverage is
The Website Hosting services are growing to be very popular as many companies, institutions, and individuals are launching websites for Presence, Interaction, and some for Commerce. With the introduction of eTranzact on the financial scene, eCommerce is no longer a nightmare, as many are signing up their websites to allow consumers to buy and sell products and services through their Online Transaction Processing Systems. The glory days, per se, of the Zimbabwean internet space has begun, hence the “bullish” run on the .CO.ZW Internet Market. There are many websites being introduced each day on the .CO.ZW name space, as the Supply of quality website services, and the Demand for Zimbabwean web content are on a steady increase. Business is surely booming in this industry.
How reasonable are their pricing?
Looking at the industry as a whole, their services are well priced, catering for every type of consumer – low income and high income. It is possible for a high density low income earning individual to subscribe for an internet connection, with a good speed of 52KB per second – adequate for good browsing and email. With the cost of computers being reasonable in that almost every home in
Making a comparison with our regional counterparts, Zimbabwean Internet Services are below average, with
Despite regulatory headaches felt here and there, the price per second for connectivity is fairly affordable. The industry regulators have made it possible for ISPs to offer quality of service without compromising profitability. The ground is level, and the price is right.
Are we being robbed as Corporates?
You can never rule out corruption in any industry, though this industry is so transparent that any form of corruption can be spotted without effort. Corporates are not being robbed of service delivery as there is an ISP for every type of consumer. The introduction of ComOne and PowerTel brought balance in the market, making it possible for everyone to have internet access. There was a time when prices were becoming exorbitant between 2002 and 2004, but the introduction of more players caused price slashes to create balance. In 2003, there was a case of an ISP who would buy cheap dial up accounts from TelOne (owner of ComOne) and resell them to consumers. They were caused and stopped the practice. This industry is watertight secure, as fair play is promoted by every ISP. ZISPA (Zimbabwe Internet Service Providers Association) is a institute appointed to govern the industry, addressing all issues that affect the innocent consumer.
How effective are the services provided?
To see the effectiveness of this industry’s services we need to look at two things – Internet Usage Rates, Diaspora Phenomenon and Broadband the Hype. Internet Usage in
The Diaspora phenomenon has caused Zimbabwean to seek cheaper means of frequent communication with their loved ones overseas. Internets, being the cheapest mode of long distance communication, consumers now have no option but to use the internet, whether in a café, home, or office. SMS does not allow people to send pictures, videos, CVs, Academic Certificates, and other documentation, so people have turned to the internet by the millions. This resulted in more homes and small offices signing up for Internet Connections.
The Broadband Hype, seen from eTV, DSTV and other media sources, has caused the Zimbabwean consumer to ask for the technology as prestige and web content appetites have increased in recent years. PowerTel, YO!
How far are we from the other developed countries?
There is a misunderstanding of Information and Communication Technology amongst the Zimbabwean folk because of the 3G mobile networking, saying that
A good example is CABS Online, and ZESA. At one point CABS had a Fibre Optic Network all over
In comparing how far we are from the developed countries let us look at AT&T of USA and British Telecoms of Britain. It took AT&T more than 100 years to commercialize, and British Telecoms similar decades. Yet it took less that 20 years, and in less than 7 years
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