The use of internet bandwidth tripled in the last three years as international voice and data traffic has increased manifold during the period, said officials of the country’s lone bandwidth providing company.
In 2008, bandwidth use was 7.5 Gigabits per second (Gbps) that leapfrogged to 22 Gbps now, said the officials of state-owned Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd (BSCCL).
The company will upgrade its capacity to 160 Gbps by February 2012 at a cost of Tk 50 crore, said Monwar Hossain, its managing director and chief executive officer.
In 2010-11 the company earned Tk 54.47 crore in profit, almost fivefold of Tk 11.55 crore it earned in 2008-09, Hossain said.
An industry analyst said increased data consumption through cable and wireless system pushed up the bandwidth use, especially after the launch of three wireless broadband providers — Qubee, Banglalion and Citycell Zoom Ultra.
Mustafa Jabbar, president of Bangladesh Computer Samity, said the broadband use will rise five times after the roll-out of 3G technology.
Jabbar said a stiff competition will emerge only when the private sector bandwidth providers will join the market.
Recently the government has allowed six new international terrestrial cables in the private sector, and plans to install another submarine cable at private initiative. If the prices and tariffs are cut, the bandwidth usage will go up, the analysts said.
Back in 2007, the caretaker government reduced the bandwidth price from Tk 75,000 to Tk 27,000 per Mbps. The price is now Tk 10,000, which the analysts said is still high.
-With The Daily Star input
