If Jordan is serious about turing it into an e-society, one of the priorities that need to be tacked is the cost of internet access. I have written many times about this, but there is some news to report.
First of all, it is great to see the ISPs reducing their prices (the reductions are between 25% and 35$ for home users). A basic 128kbps line now costs JD 10 (Batelco) or JD 11 (Orange) if you enroll in a yearly plan (I am loving the little price war in the ads above). On the high end, a 2 Megabit connection will cost you JD 30 if you pay monthly (or JD 330 per year). Of course you still need to pay Jordan Telecom another fee (JD 12 for 2MBit or JD 9 for 128Kbits for example). So a 2MBit connection in Jordan still set you back JD 42 (plus 10% tax). (for JT line connection fees see here. For Orange DSL offers see here).
Now remember: all these offers have bandwidth limitations. For moderate use, the limits are OK. But many users run out of bandwidth and their speed is switched back to a painfully slow connection when that happens.
For business lines it is worse. Connecting your business with DSL in Jordan is even more expensive and very restrictive when considering the bandwidth.
Let’s compare this situation to Germany, a country where people make much more money. You can get a flatrate, eat all you can, 4 Mbit connection for around 30 Euro (including a telephone line).
And 4 Mbit is the ENTRY LEVEL!! For 45 Euros (a little over JD 40) you get a 16Mbit connection without restrictions and a flatrate fixed line telephone connection (talk as much as you want nationwide!).
Now THIS is how a truly liberalized telecom market should look like.
The other day, a met the CEO of one of the big ISPs in Jordan. I started complaining to him about the net access situation and what he said was interesting.
Remember, a few weeks ago, there was a front page story in all the papers saying that HM The King met with representatives of the IT industry in Jordan and demanded that the IT industry is put “back on track”.
The CEO I talked to said that internet connection prices where one of the main issues on the agenda of the meeting with the king, who is clearly unhappy about the state of the Jordanian IT industry.
International bandwidth can be gotten into Jordan much cheaper than what Jordan Telecom is offering the ISPs. I don’t know if any of the ISP or the mobile companies is getting international bandwidth independently of JT (I know the Fastlink wanted to). Our supposedly liberalized telecom market will remain a joke if this doesn’t happen.
The CEO also told me that another problem is that JT still controls the ‘last mile’ connection to the customer’s houses and offices. In other liberalized markets, the old telecom monopolies have been forced to open up their networks. It diesn’t look that this has been fully implemented in Jordan.
One solution could be the provision of high speed internet over wireless connections (like WiMax, which Batelco/Umnia plan to launch soon). But many observers are predicting the failure of Wimax in a hilly geography like Amman.
It is clear that the momentum that was created a few years back, when we were promising ourselves that Jordan will become an IT hub and a telecom heaven has pretty much fizzled out. Jordan’s global ranking in global IT charts is going down. The telecom liberalization (since January 2005) has only brought us some international calling card companies (and some reductions in internet costs).
The king is absolutely right when he demands the IT industry is put back on track. The full and true liberalization of the telecom market is a big part of that. There are Jordanian startups that are pioneering the new generation of internet portals in the Arab world. How can these thrive when their home market in Jordan only has 10% internet penetration rate.
Despite the exorbitant cost of connecting to the net in Jordan, DSL connections have grown 1600% over the past 4 or 5 years. Imagine what the growth would have been had the cost of net access been more reasonable!
Long term prosperity in Jordan will not come through building towers and mall only. We NEED to become a knowledge based society and economy. We NEED better access for all to educational content. We need very cheap PCs for kids in Jordan and we need a thriving internet and tech startup scene.
Something radical needs to be done to get IT back on track in the kingdom.
Comments
9 responses to “Serious about IT in Jordan? DOWN with those DSL internet prices!”
I think the IT industry in Jordan still needs another 2 to 3 generations to get back on track. This is the time needed for a brand new generation of management to emerge from the rubble and realize the grave mistakes that its predecessors have brazenly made.
India has already passed this 2 generation mark, and IT workers are returning like crazy there or never leaving in the first place.
I like your comment, and i agree with you 103%
unfortunately the IT industry in Jordan, like every other sector that once prospered, takes one step forward and two steps back. same with tourism, health sector, higher education, media… We are in a constant state of crisis, always putting out fires. Fact is we make great policy on paper but when it’s time to implement we fail with flying colors. then there is the Dubai Factor. lets face it. Jordanian companies don’t want developers, they want salespeople. They don’t believe in service, they talk about it. They treat COTs like Ms Office. R&D is almost zelch and it’s only done for media consumption, if ever. We have a government more obsessed with image than substance. Face it, so long as the wrong people make policy and enforce it, more Jordanian talents will flee to Dubai and West. I don’t see any reversal in situation, for as long as I remember there has been so much talk about turning Jordan into this or that canter and all we end up with is dismal reports about decline of various sectors. So long as the wrong people are in the wrong place, Jordan will continue to stagnate and function only as a retirement home or a bus station for those who are heading out.
Best thing the government can do for Jordan and Jordanians is to focus on education so at least Jordanians can have a fighting chance outside of Jordan if they can’t have it in Jordan.
When I left the States two years ago, my ISP was just bumping my connection up to 5 Mb/s, and I only paid the equivalent of JD32/month. And as you said, I pay more than that for just 2 Mb/s (with restrictions) here.
Orange (JT) controls all internet pricing as long as they control the backbone to the kingdom, its that simple. ISPs can’t go bellow that threshold if they wanna stay in business. There are no decent alternatives for ISPs…VSAT has high latency compared to fiber optics. Anyone care to invest in a 100 million JD Fiber line from Aqaba to Amman let me know!
Thanks Marlboro, I’ll only assume that you were referring to my comment.
We keep falling into the same trap all the time with all those flashy initiatives that inevitably fail, yet never seem to learn a precious lesson. It’s not about technology or high-speed connectivity, laptops, mobiles or whatever, it always comes down to the PEOPLE.
Unless the mentalities in Jordan radically change, there won’t be such a thing called an “IT” industry in Jordan. Only tiny service shops.
bare in mind building a nationwide broadband strategy is not an easy thing to do. You can always have the vision and the well, but the siutation on the ground levels all playing feilds..
Pricing is a way to boost internet penetration, but a true catalyst would be embracing a true digital econmoy where public services have an e-equivilant. Gradually, economies of scale will play their role and you will see how people will be forced to either learn how to interact online of be left offline (no pun intended).
One might think Jordan is a bit behind when it comes to broadband adoption, but in comparison, the country is doing far better than any of its neighbours in the region.. atleast its on the king’s agenda.
Just a note, you can’t compare Jordan to Germany or any 1st world country, there are many things that need to be done before you can think about comparing.
Do you know when WiMax will be deplyed in jordan. it’s been 8 months since umniah won the 3.5GHz spectrum and ATCO Clearwire the 3.6 GHz.
Please update if you can.