Bottlenecks in Zimbabwean Bottlenecks in Zimbabwean

Connectivity

David Behr

10 May 201310 May 2013

One Quick Solution

• Let’s get rid of the bottleneck right here right

now!now!

• For rest of day, we have a 10mbps link into

this conference

• Access it via ZOLspot

• Access Code is “nobottlenecks”• Access Code is “nobottlenecks”

Familiar Phrases

• “you know I pay just £4.99 for 25mbps

broadband in London – and it works”broadband in London – and it works”

• “ISPs in Zimbabwe are just greedy pigs”

• “why is my service capped - that is so unfair”

Initial Thoughts

• Who says there is a bottleneck?

• Is it because our “usage” is so much lower? • Is it because our “usage” is so much lower?

Penetration?

• Is broadband cost as a % of GNI so low?

• What is optimal speed? 10mbps? 100mbps?

1gbps?1gbps?

Cost Dropping and Capacity Increasing

– dramatically!

• ZOL turned off satellite only 2 years ago!

• Satellite was between $1,000 and $2,750 per • Satellite was between $1,000 and $2,750 per mbps (simplex)

• First fibre was PowerTel in March 2010 but was more expensive than satellite

• Liquid Telecom fibre started in January 2011 and for the first time an all-fibre network was viablefor the first time an all-fibre network was viable

• Just over 2 years later, ZOL buys 8 times as much capacity at 1/6th of the average price

Take a Guess

• What is (by far) the largest type or application

in terms of bandwidth today in USA?in terms of bandwidth today in USA?

• What time of day is busiest in USA or Zim?

• What percentage of total capacity do the of

lightest 50% of users consume?

• What % do the heaviest 1% consume?• What % do the heaviest 1% consume?

Internet Applications

Top Applications

Time of Day Usage

Heaviest/Lightest Users

Some Questions to Ponder

1. Where is the Internet? What’s it doing

there?there?

2. Where are the customers anyway?

3. Where is the money?

4. Where are the innovative providers?

Where is the Internet? What’s it doing

there?

• It’s not in Zimbabwe! Try USA/EU

• Internet cost is not shared like telephone cost• Internet cost is not shared like telephone cost

• How do we bring it here?

– Local content

– CDNs

– Caching– Caching

• There is no sea. Why didn’t we get any?

Where are the customers anyway?

• This isn’t New York city!

• Customers relatively spread-out• Customers relatively spread-out

• Getting permissions to lay cable and dig roads

is hard

• Very high unemployment, very low GNI

• Very low disposable income• Very low disposable income

• Far more price sensitive than quality or speed

sensitive

Where is the money?

• This is a massively capital intensive business

• Fibre cable is the only solution• Fibre cable is the only solution

• Requires foreign investment and expertise

• Zimbabwe is not exactly known for

friendliness to investors, nor stability

• Good news is POTRAZ receives about $75m a • Good news is POTRAZ receives about $75m a

year and about half goes to USF

• Some companies are investing

Where are the innovative ISPs?

• ISPs are so boring!

• Even the new ones come out with boring • Even the new ones come out with boring

packages

• Nothing has dramatically changed in the way

Internet is packaged and sold for 10 years

• Time is ripe for a shake up – and it is coming!• Time is ripe for a shake up – and it is coming!

What is Solved?

• Connecting to sea – done in 3 directions

• Connecting around and between major metro • Connecting around and between major metro

areas – done with multiple rings and backhauls

• Connecting to any town – done by end of year

• “Harare Drive” of fibre done – 100gb/s ring

• DWDM upgrades in progress • DWDM upgrades in progress

• The big highways done but we’d all like some

money back!

Still to Solve

• Local distribution is by far our biggest problem

• If the highways are all 20-lane smooth tar, • If the highways are all 20-lane smooth tar,

then local roads full of pot-holes – or not even

tarred yet!

• Local content or at least content stored locally

• More investment, better GNI, more • More investment, better GNI, more

employment

• How do we compress time?

Access Technology Debate

• There is only one access technology that can deliver the capacity needed:deliver the capacity needed:

FIBRE FIBRE FIBRE• Don’t listen to anyone tries to tell you otherwise

– they don’t get it!

• Copper – distance, theft, age

• Wireless – are you kidding me?• Wireless – are you kidding me?

• About 80% of all data consumed is done at home or work (and almost all the rest is via 3 base stations)

Fibre vs Copper vs Wireless

FTTH and GPON

• Future-proof ducting and fibre run to every

homehome

• Multiple cores for future services

• GPON – passive – no power cuts

• Easy to upgrade active components

• Starting at 2.5gbps downstream per 64-128 • Starting at 2.5gbps downstream per 64-128

homes – that’s at least 20mbps guaranteed

per house

Let’s Break some Bottles QuickTechZim FB Comments

• Nqobile Ncube Run an unencumbered wifi spot

at Plumtree border post.

• Anthony Somerset I'd show companies like

ZOL Solutions

• We will deploy a hotspot at Plumtree in June, if Nqobile will help us manage it

• Anthony Somerset I'd show companies like

telone how to run an ISP properly and start a

local Datacentre for people to host

servers/websites

• Qda Siyaneliso Murungu Host my website in-

house and also host my clients websites and

emails

• James Ritala I'd setup an Internet WIFI Hotspot

in my neighborhood so all the school kids,

Varsity & Collegei students and even madhara

madhara can do all their research on the

• Anthony – save your energy on TelOne, come use our datacentre – we will give you free space

• Oda – we’ll give you 50 sites and domains free hosting for 2 years to get you started

• James – tell us where, we will install it

• Enycourse – we are partnering with a madhara can do all their research on the

internet freely.

• Enycourse Ziira i would introduce free internet

cafes in rural schools across the country and

elearning centres in all marginalised places in

the country

• Chakanetsa Simango Downloading and

streaming TED videos.

• Enycourse – we are partnering with a company right not to do this

• Chakanetsa – I love TED too – we’ll make them free on ZOL when our NGN goes live

Thank You!

• Questions?