Monthly Archives: December, 2008
Applications now open for LIRNEasia Young Scholar Tutorials, hosted by NUS, Singapore. Click here for info on how to apply.
Four years after Tsunami 2004 : Your smiles are ours
Four years to history, ‘Your tears are mine’ (see below) was my reaction to Asian tsunami. Reproduced in multiple sites, it was recited once in a remembrance event. Though written more in a Sri Lankan context, let me pick it again today, to remember all 225,000 lives lost, in the worst tsunami in recent history [...]
Sri Lanka Telecentre connectivity story 3: The 128 kpbs umbilical cord is not too bad…
The looks may deceive, but this is a radio station. Prabhavi Community Radio - the first Internet community radio in Sri Lanka comes from Prabhavi Resources Center, Weranketagoda, Ampara – the post-conflict district in Eastern province (8 hours travel from Colombo). It operates from a Nenasala, one of the 500 odd telecenters funded by the World [...]
Looking forward to a transformational year…
play | looking back
A year in review: 2007-2008 Annual Report
LIRNEasia’s annual report for the 2007-08 period is now available. Click here to download. Click here for previous annual reports.
Sri Lanka telecenter connectivity story 2: If there is a will there is a way…
On January 16, 2008 a bus bomb went off killing 25 and injuring more than 60, in a remote area of Moneragala, arguably the least connected district in the island. Within less than two hours, the international news channels were up with clips. Nuwan Sameera (inset) FTPed them from his Nenasala telecenter in Bibile town [...]
Sri Lanka telecenter connectivity story 1: Not an infrastructure issue always…
Ambuluwawa, about 1,100 m above sea level, is probably the highest point in the vicinity of Gampola. Not surprisingly, all telecom operators exploit the geography. Transmission stations/towers encircle the summit. (See above) That is what one calls infrastructure.
Just 10 km away, Sirimalwatte Ananda thero, a young and energetic Buddhist monk, runs a Nenasala, a telecenter [...]
Telecom corruption: Every country should check Siemens court papers
There are still some who talk about the value of government ownership of telecom operators. In their talk of national interest and local control, rarely is mentioned the word corruption.
The recent case in which Siemens pleaded guilty to massive “accounting violations” and paid large fines should be of interest to [...]
Three Mediterranean cables out: Maldives connectivity down 100%?
Undersea cable operators have a nasty habit of laying cables close to each other. When they get cut, they tend to go in sets. The first question I have is why Maldives would lose 100% of traffic when it is connected by two undersea cables, one to Colombo and the other to [...]
Dialog Telekom’s Broadband Revolution: As narrated by GSMA
“Sri Lanka’s leading mobile operator is creating a broadband revolution. By leveraging HSPA mobile broadband technology, it is bringing affordable access to all levels of society, from the wealthiest businesses to the poorest villages.”
Thus starts the GSMA case study on the Dialog mobile broadband. It is just four pages and in easily readable format – [...]
LIRNEasia’s Broadband research on MTV
BizFirst this week will focus on LIRNEasia’s Broadband benchmarking research. This will be broadcast over MTV and Shakthi TV simultaneously, on December 19, at 9.30 pm.
Apart from me, R. Tirumurthy of IIT Madras – the thought leadership of the team that developed the test software package will participate in this program. We talk about the [...]
Indonesia: Bakrie Telecom gets approval for tower sales
Indonesia’s PT Bakrie Telecom Tbk said on Tuesday it had shareholder approval for a plan to sell its telecommunications towers, which could raise 380.22 billion rupiah ($34.48 million).
Bakrie Telecom said proceeds from the sale of 543 towers would go towards capital expenditure, which is set at about $200 million next year.
“The sales provide us not [...]
India to auction 3G first, WiMax is next
India’s government has finalised the plans for its 3G and WiMAX auctions – with the 3G auctions starting on January 16th next year. Auctions for WiMAX licenses will commence two days after the 3G licenses are sold. Acording to a memorandum from the Department of Telecoms, there will be a pre-bid conference next week, with [...]
Mobile set to overtake fixed in international voice in 2009
The trend to mobile continues.
Mobile phones have been a key driver of growth, due to subscriber growth in developing countries and the recent emergence of low-cost international mobile calling plans. In 2007, nearly one-third of international calls were placed from mobile phones, and 45 percent of international calls were terminated on mobiles. Current trends suggest [...]
Sri Lanka: Bharti Airtel – Coming soon?
The question most who phoned our office last week asked was: When Bharti Airtel will start its Sri Lanka operations? We have no clue why they assumed LIRNEasia is linked to the Indian telco that plans to launch its operation in Sri Lanka shortly. So our polite answer was: Sorry, we do not know and [...]
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