Best bit of news I have seen in a while.

"Those pre-construction customers ,  that have taken up our services to date are Etisalat, [b]MTN [/b]and Starcomms," Main One chief executive Funke Opeke told investors and telecoms executives at a launch ceremony in the commercial hub Lagos.

Steven Evans, chief executive of Etisalat's Nigerian arm, told Reuters his firm was testing the cable and would go live on it within a day or two.

"We are working very hard at the moment to go live on the network, hopefully within the next 24-48 hours ,  so that we will be one of the first people to be having broadband on the main network in Nigeria," Evans said.

I really need to get in touch with all these your freedom people . I don't understand why Zain was not a pre-construction customer.




http://af.reuters.com/article/investingNews/idAFJOE66K0LT20100721

^^ saw the launch on NTA news with Fashola and co, very nice

Evans said the cable would enable mobile phone operators to launch enhanced services, increase speed and lower prices, boosting competition in Africa's most populous nation of 140 million people.

Yuuuh right

Doubt it will get to private users before the end of the year

confusing reports on the state of glo1 from the print media.

@jdoss. how does Steve Evans want to give us broadband speed on his Etisalat's  EDGE network

@Flyuche. lol, I was thinking exactly the same thing, of all networks Etisalat wants to talk. They have a unified license, so I guess there is stuff they could do. I don't understand the rush to integrate though.

What really interested me was the fact that he was saying Etisalat has the bandwidth from main one. That should mean that MTN and Starcomms also have the bandwidth, and the smaller ISPs should either already have it or get it very soon.

Until I hear another telecoms company or ISP independently confirm that they have bought capacity on Glo 1, I will not believe it is up and running.

cables to major roads or to domestic houses? make una dey decieve una selves. all the glo staff sef, no amount of image laundering can remedy the ills of your services and business model

How can Glo just lay cables to houses without the owner first requesting for the service? I thought one had to request for the service first.

If you read this thread from the beginning you will know i am no Glo fan not to talk of being a staff! If i were one I would have been fired long ago. I observed the cables have manholes at regular intervals and branches to their huge masts (They are larger than the usual ones)

how does Steve Evans want to give us broadband speed on his Etisalat's EDGE network

I thought Etisalat bought Alheri Engineering's 3G licence sometime last year?

http://www.technologytimesng.com/2009/12/12/dangote-etisalat-nigeria-seal-n22-5b-3g-spectrum-sale-deal/

interesting. dangote! i knew he was going to sell his licence.

flyuche:

can't glo buy bandwidth for it's 3G service

i think its more about the technical and deployment issue, their edge is very stable, if u can recall zain gprs is poor in PH.

jdoss:

I wasn't trying to argue with you, I actually found it funny. I am just trying to find out the cost per MB to an ISP(for personal information, not because I represent some large company)

You can only get such bandwidth from resellers, it varies from one to another and depending on ur location.

4llerbuntu:

i can bet you, only PARTS OF LAGOS AND ABJ

That's not true, I am very sure of most of the Southern part of the country.  A Private firm is linking up in Warri right now.

flyuche:

are they doing that now? before we begin to enjoy this broadband speed? another 3year wait?

The truth of the matter is that the laying of fibre cables to home is not the sole resposibility of Globacom, Nigeria has no infrastructure in place, if u follow the broadband reports of news in the uk, Govt is taking it up as a serious challenge to give last mile connectivity to homes, i think the Govt and policy makers have a lot to play in this issue. (You can imagine LGC, State Govt and even street landlords demanding compensation because u wanna lay fibre)

goggs:

How can Glo just lay cables to houses without the owner first requesting for the service? I thought one had to request for the service first.

If you read this thread from the beginning you will know i am no Glo fan not to talk of being a staff! If i were one I would have been fired long ago.

In oversees u dont ve to request for the service first, its always up for grabs

I dont think we've got any glo staff here, everyone is just hoping for the best

^^^ well i did'nt want to get into an argument with the UP FIBRE CABLE brigade, but i dont know why you will tell me i have to ask for service first before you make it available to my area.

thats like saying i need to buy a phone and sim card before mtn decides to come install a mast in my vicinity. besides, if i am the only one who requires the service in my very large and remote area, are you telling me glo will then lay the cable all the way there just for me?

dude, lay the cables into the streets, when its there i can decide if i wanna join it or not!!!


funny thing is, all this hair pulling need not even occur sef. why cant we have small coys who will lay copper cable networks into particular vicinity and offer service based on the Big fibres? must it be the same coy who installed the transatlantic cable who has to do the domestic ones too? besides, if glo has cables into everywhere, in the event of cuts and all other stuff, can u imagine how slow response will be to rectify given naija factors?


there are business opportunities opening up, bottomline. the question is will the big players and the system let it flourish?

Hey, What I meant was that Glo was laying cables along major streets with manholes at regular intervals. If you requests for the service I assume the manhole will be where to tap from. Its like NITEL of old. Just before their collapse, they laid underground service cables all over my area with junction boxes at regular intervals. If you pay the N19,00 for connection a cable is wired to your home from the nearest junction. I assume its the same thing with Glo. At least major streets in Abuja and surrounding towns are being wired. Is Glo to wire up to your door when you didnt request for their service? I dont think so. But I expect the fiber to pass along your street or one close to you.

but i dont know why you will tell me i have to ask for service first before you make it available to my area. thats like saying i need to buy a phone and sim card before mtn decides to come install a mast in my vicinity. besides, if i am the only one who requires the service in my very large and remote area, are you telling me glo will then lay the cable all the way there just for me?

For remote areas even BT in UK at one time had to get a significant number of intending customers before they would extend broadband to that area.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2051537.stm

Its nice that all of this is coming up, it only shows that we're preparing ourselves for the fibre fever.

4llerbuntu:

^^^ well i did'nt want to get into an argument with the UP FIBRE CABLE brigade, but i dont know why you will tell me i have to ask for service first before you make it available to my area.

thats like saying i need to buy a phone and sim card before mtn decides to come install a mast in my vicinity. besides, if i am the only one who requires the service in my very large and remote area, are you telling me glo will then lay the cable all the way there just for me?

dude, lay the cables into the streets, when its there i can decide if i wanna join it or not!!!

You made a fine point but it doesn't always work that way. I think those doing networking should be able to explain better. Customers got responsibilities also whether they like it or not.

We've got what is called the CPE, the Demarcation point, the local loop and the central office, the service provider resposibility ends @ d demac.
That's all i'll say on that u can google further. As an analogy the water pipes don't run through every street, if it's not in urs u'll always ve to extend.

4llerbuntu:


funny thing is, all this hair pulling need not even occur sef. why cant we have small coys who will lay copper cable networks into particular vicinity and offer service based on the Big fibres? must it be the same coy who installed the transatlantic cable who has to do the domestic ones too? besides, if glo has cables into everywhere, in the event of cuts and all other stuff, can u imagine how slow response will be to rectify given naija factors?

there are business opportunities opening up, bottomline. the question is will the big players and the system let it flourish?

You're definitely right, main one was complaining of the cost of lay per km in Lagos, others can and should join in last mile connectivity, everything should not be left for main one and glo 1.

for those that want to watch part of the launch of Main-one

http://www.tundefashola.com/archives/news/2010/07/21/20100721N01.html

from Fashola's official website.

Globacom Not Pulling Out of Ghana, Says Jameel

Nigeria’s national carrier, Globacom has disclosed that it is not pulling out of Ghana.
Group Chief Operating Officer of the company, Mohammed Jameel at an interactive session with newsmen in Lagos, yesterday disclosed that the firm, has invested so much in its Ghanaian operations that it was not ready to leave, despite challenges encountered. He revealed that Glo will launch its operations in Ghana and ensure that every part of Ghana is covered with an excellent network. He emphasised that ‘’we are not worried and even if it takes three months, Ghana will go live. We want to get it right and do it right first time and we will’’

Globacom had in May been reported to be considering withdrawing its services from Ghana .
Ghana news agencies had reported that Globacom was considering the move due to the challenges it was facing in its bid to roll out its services across Ghana.
It was reported that there were some interests frustrating and sabotaging its planned nationwide take off plan.

Some of the challenges said to be faced by Glo include vandalisation of its equipment and encroachment on the frequency allocated to it by the National Communications Authourity NCA. It was also said to be encountering a delay in securing approval for the swift deployment of its infrastructures like base stations two years after it secured the Ghanaian license

Jameel also disclosed that the Glo 1 submarine cable will be commercially launched in August. He revealed that in the middle of August, Glo 1 will launch services first on Globacom traffic and then a week later launch the cable commercially for all Nigerians. He stated that the cable was being launched on the traffic of Glo first to ensure that everything was okay before it is launched for the benefit of all Nigerians.

He also commented on the issue of pricing in the sector and stressed that though there was pressure on telecoms operators to reduce tariffs, the cost of production in the nation is very high. He singled out the issue of multiple taxation as a problem in the industry and urged the government to address the issue not only for the benefit of the operators who are carrying a huge burden, but also for the benefit of all Nigerians. He stated that it was difficult to think of price reduction, when faced with such high cost.

He lamented that the burden of multiple taxation is being passed to the consumer.” A local government council can wake up one morning and ask an operator to pay 50 million naira to get permit to lay cables and as a law abiding entity, the operator has no choice but to pay. We pay for of way, we pay to local governments, we pay to state government and this payments translate to huge costs stifling the growth of the industry’’ said Jameel.

He called for a single means of taxation for operators as opposed to multiple taxation to forestall the huge cost of production in the industry.


http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=178977

. Na wa for this company oh!!!!!!!!!!

Dis na Siddon Look.

Shei na August? We dey kampke!

It looks like Etisalat is on main one.

http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=179152

From what I heard from someone I know using Etisalat, their Internet service has picked up.

More reports from Etisalat Users, pls tell us your experience.

Djcn:

More reports from Etisalat Users, pls tell us your experience.

I use Etisalat, and I've noticed a definite improvement from about a week after the main-one launch. Its a little faster and you don't need to refresh as many times to get a page to open (This is using opera mini mind you).

It's still not fantastic though.

Gentlemen, i still think we will not fully maximise the benefits of these transatlantic cables except we develop our last mile infrastructure which will definitely deliver at our doorstep true broadband capabilities. These Telcos still rely heavily staellite to deliver these services and as such is still early days, so lets siddon look as we are sure we have an almost limitless capacities not just in Nigeria and but in West Africa so, do not rejoice yet! Good morning!

broomstick:

Gentlemen, i still think we will not fully maximise the benefits of these transatlantic cables except we develop our last mile infrastructure which will definitely deliver at our doorstep true broadband capabilities. These Telcos still rely heavily staellite to deliver these services and as such is still early days, so lets siddon look as we are sure we have an almost limitless capacities not just in Nigeria and but in West Africa so, do not rejoice yet! Good morning!

Glo did exactly that, end to end connectivity as they are also building the last mile,

the question/challenge is, how well they will be able to maintain their infastructure, and when the glo-1 will be operational,

Jameel also disclosed that the Glo 1 submarine cable will be commercially launched in August. He revealed that in the middle of August, Glo 1 will launch services first on Globacom traffic and then a week later launch the cable commercially for all Nigerians.

August 10, 2010. time 10.50 pm:

10 days down, 20 more to go. After laying cables around my town, glo signals turned from 3g to 3.5 g, One small step for glo; one giant leap for their battered, goal shifting, PR disaster image. I wish them well, truely.

goggs:

August 10, 2010. time 10.50 pm:

10 days down, 20 more to go. After laying cables around my town, glo signals turned from 3g to 3.5 g, One small step for glo; one giant leap for their battered, goal shifting, PR disaster image. I wish them well, truely.

I will be shocked if they actually launch in August.

@tomcat,

i would think they will outsource their maintenance to a company like Alcatel-Lucent

Hey Guys,

Etisalat is now the 1st GSM carrier to have an unlimited plan courtesy of Main One. Etisalat just launched a new plan called Easynet Time http://www.etisalat.com.ng/easynet.php. You can use it with your regular Etisalat prepaid SIM card or the Easynet data-only SIM card and Modem. Right now, i have subsrcibed to the N5000 Nighttime and Weekend Plan. I downloaded over 800MB on my first night. Etisalat is using an EDGE network but sometimes the speed rushes to 120 KB/S. I get an average of 29-35 KB/S using Internet Download Manager. Utorrent also works flawlessly with all ports opened. God bless Main One Cable Company as we are now reaping the rewards on the Etisalat Network.

a 3G network on etisalat would make more sense.

samir101ng:

Hey Guys,

Etisalat is now the 1st GSM carrier to have an unlimited plan courtesy of Main One. Etisalat just launched a new plan called Easynet Time http://www.etisalat.com.ng/easynet.php. You can use it with your regular Etisalat prepaid SIM card or the Easynet data-only SIM card and Modem. Right now, i have subsrcibed to the N5000 Nighttime and Weekend Plan. I downloaded over 800MB on my first night. Etisalat is using an EDGE network but sometimes the speed rushes to 120 KB/S. I get an average of 29-35 KB/S using Internet Download Manager. Utorrent also works flawlessly with all ports opened. God bless Main One Cable Company as we are now reaping the rewards on the Etisalat Network.

hmmmm,
now where did i put my easynet data sim?

The Site no dey gree open for me o! Abi na because say i dey use MTN??

tomcat:

Glo did exactly that, end to end connectivity as they are also building the last mile,

the question/challenge is, how well they will be able to maintain their infastructure, and when the glo-1 will be operational,

Glo-1 is currently layin the last mile infrastructure round but the scope of the project is too huge for them to undertake and will only be enjoyed when the cables are lit up but i insist it still early days. Only Lagos and Abuja have a realistic chance of going live this year but apparently this is Glo, so its a not a guarantee , more of a lottery than a Telco!

broomstick:

Glo-1 is currently layin the last mile infrastructure round but the scope of the project is too huge for them to undertake and will only be enjoyed when the cables are lit up but i insist it still early days. Only Lagos and Abuja have a realistic chance of going live this year but apparently this is Glo, so its a not a guarantee , more of  a lottery than a Telco!

their website says it will be available in 13 cities (broadband and fixed line). i am guessing it will be available in urban areas of the cities (i am just guessing  )

http://www.gloworld.com/broadband.asp

Glo-1 is a mirage as far as i am concerned. Glo has had a long history of pioneering innovations in Nigeria's GSM sector BUT in the end they always finish last. Its a classic example in the Looney Tunes cartoon where the Tortoise challenges the Rabbit (a.k.a Wabbit) to a race and always win in the end through ingenious means despite the natural strength and agility of the rabbit. I remember when Glo introduced the Per second Billing and Glo Mobile Internet and MMS. Glo was then shouting to the high heavens that they had the first and only 2.5G network in Nigeria. But what happened, to activate your sim you had to call customer care and request for the service which took a minimum of 5 working days. But MTN however enabled all their sims from the get go. Also, requesting internet/mms settings was so easy on MTN. Just send a text "SETTNGS" to 3888.

Secondly, Glo's 3G+ and EDGE network is practically non-existent in the Northern part of the country. I have travelled throughout the Northern part of Nigeria from the North Central (Nassarawa, Benue, Jos) and i challenge anybody to post a screenshot of Glo 3G+ or EDGE network. Even in Abuja at Garki II CBN Senior Staff Qtrs (Near Tantalizers), i cannot get Glo 3G+ or EDGE network only GPRS. I mean MTN has blanketed everywhere with EDGE service in the country. We even have full 3.5G service in Kaduna, Zaria, Kano, Maiduguri, Jos, Bauchi. If Glo's 3G+ network cannot even reach everywhere in Abuja, what hope is there about there Glo-1 fibre links service. What will happen will be that MTN will buy massive bandwidth on Main One or build their own and roll out service everywhere while Glo is still left holding the ball. Glo are too slow in pioneering innovations. MTN is offering DSTV Mobile people ! Supersport on your phone where there is DVB-H service and with a compatible phone. Anyhow, we dey rock Etibaba for now.

@ samir101ng

I am with you on this post!

th indians running this company are really ruining it.

samir101ng:

Glo-1 is a mirage as far as i am concerned. Glo has had a long history of pioneering innovations in Nigeria's GSM sector BUT in the end they always finish last. Its a classic example in the Looney Tunes cartoon where the Tortoise challenges the Rabbit (a.k.a Wabbit) to a race and always win in the end through ingenious means despite the natural strength and agility of the rabbit. I remember when Glo introduced the Per second Billing and Glo Mobile Internet and MMS. Glo was then shouting to the high heavens that they had the first and only 2.5G network in Nigeria. But what happened, to activate your sim you had to call customer care and request for the service which took a minimum of 5 working days. But MTN however enabled all their sims from the get go. Also, requesting internet/mms settings was so easy on MTN. Just send a text "SETTNGS" to 3888.

Secondly, Glo's 3G+ and EDGE network is practically non-existent in the Northern part of the country. I have travelled throughout the Northern part of Nigeria from the North Central (Nassarawa, Benue, Jos) and i challenge anybody to post a screenshot of Glo 3G+ or EDGE network. Even in Abuja at Garki II CBN Senior Staff Qtrs (Near Tantalizers), i cannot get Glo 3G+ or EDGE network only GPRS. I mean MTN has blanketed everywhere with EDGE service in the country. We even have full 3.5G service in Kaduna, Zaria, Kano, Maiduguri, Jos, Bauchi. If Glo's 3G+ network cannot even reach everywhere in Abuja, what hope is there about there Glo-1 fibre links service. What will happen will be that MTN will buy massive bandwidth on Main One or build their own and roll out service everywhere while Glo is still left holding the ball. Glo are too slow in pioneering innovations. MTN is offering DSTV Mobile people ! Supersport on your phone where there is DVB-H service and with a compatible phone. Anyhow, we dey rock Etibaba for now.

"We"? Do you work for MTN perchance? I'm just asking,

lumzi23:

"We"? Do you work for MTN perchance? I'm just asking,

No, i don't work for MTN Nigeria. I was referring to people based in the Northern part of the country collectively. I am an avid internet user and always try out different service providers. MTN is currently the champion followed by Etisalat in the North.