Open letter to Noel [sbpost]

eircomtribunal

Kathleen writes in today's Sunday Business Post

Ethiopia puts Irish broadband to shame

14 May 2006 By Kathleen Barrington
An open letter to Noel Dempsey asks why Ireland, now one of the world’s richest countries, lags behind Ethiopia in broadband provision.

Dear minister,
The other night I attended an engagement party for a friend who is getting married in Ethiopia. As the night wore on, those of us who will be unable to make the journey to Africa in September began to think of alternative ways to join in the celebrations.

Perhaps it was the influence of too much bubbly, but about midnight we came up with the idea that the ones who couldn’t make it to Ethiopia would get together for a party in Dublin and view proceedings over the internet.

Then, one of the more sober among us asked if it would be possible to do an internet broadcast from Ethiopia given that it is one of the poorest countries in the world and unlikely to have the necessary broadband capability.

Our friend – who works with an aid agency that provides feeding programmes to starving Ethiopians - quickly assured us that getting access to broadband wouldn’t be a problem as the Ethiopian government had begun investing massively in broadband capability.

She didn’t have the figures to hand (it was a party, after all), but it turns out that the Ethiopian government is spending as much as one tenth of its GDP each year in a bold effort to make a great leap forward on the information technology front, including a major public sector computerisation programme and equipping hundreds of offices and schools with broadband connections.

To put that in context, the average income per capita in Ethiopia is about $110. And the Guardian newspaper reported last year that, if all goes according to plan by 2007 none of Ethiopia’s 74 million people will live more than a few kilometres from a broadband access point. One of the goals of the investment is to use the internet to bring education to remote areas where there is an acute teacher shortage.

Of course, Ethiopia will continue to lag behind developed countries such as Ireland for years to come when it comes to the state of its telecommunications infrastructure.

But it is the scale of the Ethiopian government’s ambition that impresses when compared with your laissez-faire attitude on the crucial question of rolling out broadband in Ireland, now one of the richest countries in the world.

In the two years that you have been the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, there has been precious little progress in the roll-out of broadband.

Indeed, a Dail committee chaired by one of your own party’s TDs, Noel O’Flynn, stated earlier this year that progress on broadband development over the last two years has been ‘‘almost nonexistent’’.

The lack of broadband availability in homes and small businesses in rural Ireland is a national disgrace that the monopoly provider Eircom has tried to conceal behind a wall of misleading advertising and disinformation.

Since then, things have gone from bad to worse.

The decision by British Telecom at one stage to walk away in frustration from talks with Eircom about unbundling the local loop is, for many observers, confirmation of your failure to put in place the kind of regulatory regime that would force Eircom to open up the last mile of its network to competition.

Worse still, Danny McLaughlin, chief executive, BT Ireland, has made it abundantly clear he does ‘‘not see positive indications that a future change of ownership at the monopoly provider will bring a more progressive approach’’.

‘‘We believe that Eircom’s stance will jeopardise industry investment and impact on Ireland’s competitiveness,” McLaughlin said. ‘‘It is evident that ComReg does not have sufficient powers to improve this situation.”

I would like to remind you of the extraordinary lengths to which some businesses and consumers have to go to obtain broadband, now widely seen as a basic requirement for conducting business and personal affairs.

Just last week, e-Business Live, a magazine produced by state agency Enterprise Ireland noted that 15 per cent of the population is still engaged in a battle to convince broadband providers to roll out high-speed internet access in their areas.

Take Foamalite, a Co Cavan manufacturer of PVC sheeting which had to resort to drastic measures in order to get broadband.

As much as 95 per cent of Foamalite’s business is export-based and the company found that broadband was vital to improve competitiveness and cut costs.

Last year, Foamalite discovered that Eircom was not planning to introduce DSL broadband to the Lough Gowna area for at least another two years.

Eventually, the Lough Gowna community held a public meeting about the broadband situation, applied for funding for broadband under the National Community Broadband Scheme, and was successful.

It then had to persuade a broadband provider to offer the service.

‘‘It really was a long drawn-out process, but we knew that if we didn’t do something about it we would have been waiting another two years for broadband in the area,’’ Siobhan Reilly, an executive with Foamalite told e-Business Live. Digiweb set up a mast in the local area and provided the Lough Gowna community with wireless broadband.

I would remind you also of the experience of journalist Sarah McQuaid. When she was buying her house in Gorey, Co Wexford, she rang Eircom to inquire how soon broadband would be available as her ability to telecommute was a major factor behind her decision to move out of Dublin.

She said she was told her local exchange was due for upgrade to broadband readiness within three months. That was three years ago.

Earlier this year she highlighted her plight in the media after Eircom would no longer even speculate as to when the upgrade might happen.

She made the point that she wasn’t living in the back of beyond, but in a new housing estate on the main road between Gorey and Wexford town.

‘‘Because our dial-up connection is too slow and unreliable to allow me to work from home, my two small children spend more than ten hours a day in a creche,” she said.

‘‘I rack up 600 miles a week driving to and from work - adding to traffic congestion, polluting the atmosphere and increasing the likelihood of my being involved in a collision.

‘‘If I lived in deepest rural France - or, indeed, any part of the North - I would have no difficulty accessing broadband. I wonder how many of the traffic and childcare problems that are so prevalent these days are due to Ireland’s failure to keep up with 21st century technology?”

Just last week, McQuaid said she was finally on the brink of getting wireless broadband, largely as a result of her own efforts in highlighting a business opportunity for a wireless provider in the Wexford area.

It is unreasonable to expect businesses and consumers to have to set up their own telecommunications service or provide mergers and acquisitions advice to players in the market in order to get a decent telecommunications service.

It is the equivalent of asking you, Minister, to set up a car importing business in order to get a ministerial car.

It is in part, the measure of your failure to give the regulator the necessary powers to force competition in the market that we have heard the extraordinary calls for Eircom to be re-nationalised or for the state to build a rival state-of-the-art fibre optic network at a cost of €2 billion.

In previous ministerial positions, you have earned respect for innovations such as the introduction of the plastic bag tax and the abolition of the dual mandate.

After two years in the job as telecommunications minister, the time has come for some radical action to give the country a world-class telecommunications infrastructure.

Let’s face it, if the Ethiopians can be that ambitious, why can’t we?

Yours sincerely,
Kathleen Barrington

eircomtribunal

Dear Kathleen Barrington,

let me repeat to you exactly what I have said publicly at the Galway Broadband conference this April:

"Broadband is a priority issue for me and this Government. I have to be frank with you here this morning and say that I am tired of hearing so much negativity around the issue of broadband. I fully accept that we have a way to go and ground to make up, I would be the very first to accept that but can we just stand back and look at some of the achievements and progress that we have made in the recent past.
We have seen significant improvements during 2005 and in the first quarter of this year. There are now over 320,000 broadband subscribers in Ireland, a figure that is growing rapidly. In fact, the market more than doubled in twelve months. That was twice the rate of growth in the EU broadband market. I believe that this is a clear signal of the strength and demand in the broadband market in Ireland. It is fully anticipated that we will reach our target of 400,000 broadband subscribers by the end of this year.
It is important to evaluate our progress in a balanced manner and recognise achievements where they have been made. I am concerned that some commentators overplay the so-called 'broadband failure' in Ireland. They risk unnecessarily damaging Ireland's international reputation."

To celebrate our great broadband achievements I have asked AnPost to issue a new commemorative stamp, again in co-operation with another often maligned but in fact highly successful government. Allow me to invite you to the launch event at the GPO later this month. Preview of the stamp design:


Yours

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Rescources
Noel Dempsey

eircomtribunal

While Dem No-il and Kim Jong-il, blinded by their advisers to the reality of their countries' affairs, are celebrating, the South Koreans are trying to assist us:
Korea offers Ireland broadband lessons

If Korea is the gold medal winner in the broadband Olympics, then Ireland would pick up the wooden spoon. As of December 2005, there were just 270,700 broadband subscribers in Ireland, according to the OECD. This amounts to a penetration level of just 6.7 subscribers per 100 inhabitants, well below the OECD average of 13.6 subscribers per 100 inhabitants.

Caball hopes the Ireland Korea Association (IKA) event will help the Irish broadband industry to hear a true broadband success story and maybe give players some new ideas on how to proceed.

Recent developments in the Irish market suggest that things could be getting better. Eircom claims that there is now 85 percent broadband availability nationwide, although some organisations have suggested that this figure is closer to 65 percent.

P.
P.S.: And I promise this to be the final snippet taken from the cutting floor after doing the last ComWreck article.

Dangger

I think it's particularly important that the message that Ireland Offline have been repeating for the last 5 years is now understood and unfortunately still experienced first hand by a greater number of journalists (not just the techie ones).

Kathleen Barrington's piece succeeds in highlighting so much of what Ireland Offline has been saying and successfully personalises it for the masses.

P.S.
eircomtribunal I can't tell you how much your Photoshop skills make me laugh, despite the accuracy of the ire.

JohnC.

Excuse my ignorance, but who is Kathleen Barrington?

smellslikeshoes

Its great to see that some journalists recognise the facts and not the propaganda. Hopefully this will open more peoples eyes to the fact that eircom, comreg and ultimatly the government is failing us.

Hacketry

Kahless wrote:

Excuse my ignorance, but who is Kathleen Barrington?

Kathleen Barrington writes The Insider column for The Biz Post which is usually concerned with investment issues.

I'll be speaking to Noel Dempsey soon. Anyone got any questions they'd like asked?

The Real B-man

Hacketry wrote:

Kathleen Barrington writes The Insider column for The Biz Post which is usually concerned with investment issues.

I'll be speaking to Noel Dempsey soon. Anyone got any questions they'd like asked?

Yeah what internet connection does he have!! 100mb

lucernarian

Ask Noel what he, or anyone else for that matter, is going to do with the Metropolitan Area Network in Kiltimagh, Co. Mayo.

The govt usually respontd to criticism with "Oh we invested xyz amound in abc" so ask if the govt. will "invest" to connect the Kiltimagh MAN to the internet.

damien

Dempsey has a reply in today's Business Post.

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources Noel Dempsey replies to last week’s open letter about broadband from Kathleen Barrington.

Healthy debate and criticism is always welcome, particularly in the area of broadband provision. However, Kathleen Barrington’s article in last week’s Sunday Business Post suggesting that there has been ‘‘precious little’’ or ‘‘nonexistent’’ progress in the rollout of broadband is simply not true. Comparing Ireland to Ethiopia, which has 0.1 per cent broadband coverage, adds nothing to the debate.

No one has been more open about the need to improve broadband coverage in this country than me. That is the reason why, when I was appointed Minister for Communications in late 2004 when there were only 100,000 subscribers, I set a target of 400,000 broadband subscribers by the end of 2006.Broadband subscription has tripled since then.

While significant progress has been made, I am not satisfied with the present broadband situation in Ireland. I believe that there is still significant room for improvement. I have made my views clear to the broadband industry when I have met them.

Consider the following:

By the end of March, there were an estimated 320,000 broadband subscribers in Ireland. Ireland’s broadband take-up has grown by almost 110 per cent in the past twelve months - twice the growth rate in the European Union. DSL prices fell by 25 per cent during 2005 - they are now 20 per cent below the EU average. Broadband is widely available for €20-€30 per month. Broadband coverage has increased to three quarters of the population.

International access to Ireland is amongst the cheapest in Europe, which is particularly important for foreign companies investing in Ireland. The IDA’s chief executive, Sean Dorgan, recently commented that ‘‘we do not lack broadband availability for business’’. Most commentators recognise that Ireland’s current take-up of broadband, and its position in various broadband rankings, is a reflection of the relatively late launch of competitive broadband services in the early part of this decade.

We are behind, but the situation is improving rapidly. In Europe, three in every ten households have broadband.In Ireland, two in ten households have broadband. The government’s telecoms strategy is clear.We operate a liberalised telecoms market to enable competition between service providers to drive choice, new entrants, service innovation, cost reductions, and the rollout of infrastructure into the Irish telecoms marketplace.

The Irish consumer is benefiting from telecoms competition.Where the market does not work properly, this government has intervened in two strategic areas: regulation and infrastructure. Ireland was one of the first countries to fully implement the European regulatory framework, which has competition at its core. Where regulation needs strengthening, I have acted. I am giving the regulator, ComReg, stronger enforcement power under a new Communications Bill.

I also announced new competition powers that will allow ComReg to investigate issues of dominance in the market. I have made it clear to all DSL operators involved in local loop unbundling that I consider its full implementation an essential requirement for effective competition. If more regulatory action is necessary, I will implement it.The government has also made long-term decisive moves in telecoms infrastructure.

Investment in Global Crossing ensured abundant, low-cost international connectivity for Ireland, which has underpinned many foreign investments in Ireland. Under the national development plans, my department has funded the rollout out of regional broadband backbone for many of the major telecoms companies in Ireland. The metropolitan area networks programme is providing open-access networks in regional towns for telecoms companies and their customers, which has supported employment in many regional locations.

The group broadband scheme has part-funded the rollout of over 150 rural broadband services throughout the country, including islands such as Clare Island, Inishturk and Inishbofin. Broadband is also being rolled out to over 3,500 schools. I am monitoring the market closely and I will take further infrastructure initiatives where necessary. Choice and coverage of services are being constantly improved by service providers. My aim is to see this continue.

Increasing competition between many private service providers, supported by strategic government investment in infrastructure, is delivering broadband in Ireland today. One can see the increasing range of broadband services currently offered in Ireland on the website www.broadband.gov.ie

There are 68 broadband providers, a mixture of DSL, fixed wireless, satellite and cable, offering almost 300 different types of broadband products. Consumers must play their role by shopping around. This government is focused on increasing competition, extending coverage, and encouraging take-up of broadband services in Ireland.

However, unfounded statements about broadband in Ireland do little for Ireland’s reputation, nor do they recognise the work done by the government and many private companies to date and the real progress in the broadband market.

MrShadow

and where is the third phase of gbs funding that he keeps promising is going to be announced in "a couple of weeks time" for the last 6 months.

What new initiatives have begun under Noel Dempsey? all he seems to be doing is watching Dermotts initiatives come to fruitition and passing them off as his great works.

Sponge Bob

damien.m wrote:

Dempsey has a reply in today's Business Post.

a smorgasbord of reannouncements written by a civil servant.

The group broadband scheme has part-funded the rollout of over 150 rural broadband services throughout the country, including islands such as Clare Island, Inishturk and Inishbofin

LOL, the same civil servants held that scheme up for ages because there was no mention of satellite backhaul in the proposal. Dempseys department refused to believe it could have been done with Wireless, in 2005.

I set a target of 400,000 broadband subscribers by the end of 2006.

Dermot Ahern set a target of 350,000 ....BUT that was by this time last year.. and you abolished it Noel did you not.

two in ten households have broadband.

Lie , there are some 1.25million households (not houses, households) and 250,000 of those do not have Broadband .

The government’s telecoms strategy is clear.

Its very clear in rural areas Noel, we have **** all and thats the strategy.

However, unfounded statements about broadband in Ireland do little for Ireland’s reputation

Quite right Noel. Pretending we are at the races while we prod an arthritic nag out of a draughty horsebox is bad for our reputation.

Universal Provisioning, a clear vision and a clear strategy to implement Universal as in what it says on the can would be what I would call "a clear strategy" .

Broadband coverage has increased to three quarters of the population.

The eircom / Comreg stand I see. That figure is actually between 57% and 66% and most likely at the lower end of that band as I explained clearly here. But you do not want facts Noel do you ????

There are many other lies but I am tired now

kaizersoze

Sponge, you wrote that as if Noel was going to be reading:D
Or maybe he is. 0_o

Sponge Bob

Unlike the Ethiopians Noel does not do ambition. Unlike the Ethiopians Noel does not do vision . Noel did not address the ambition thing or the vision thing in his article as you may have noted. He got a civil servant to cobble together some factoids and signed at the bottom.

The SBP then did the nation a disservice by printing it. An editor with better critical faculties would have shredded the (emmmm ) 'logic' behind it and binned the thing rather than print it. Hopefully they will consider a rebuttal next week by someone who knows what they are talking about !

Therefore it matters not whether Noel reads this because Noel is not going to do anything unless something of a Damascene nature penetrates the sunroof in his spanking new Lexus LS Hybrid jobbie.

zuma

kaizersoze wrote:

Sponge, you wrote that as if Noel was going to be reading:D
Or maybe he is. 0_o

I have no doubt that someone in his department reads through these threads every once and a while to gauge the opinion of IOL so that the views discussed here can be tilted in favour of the comms Dept when Pat Kenny/Matt Cooper comes calling!

lucernarian

Have to say SB, you've quite a concise reply there. It's the kind of thing that needs to be voiced more. Thanks be to christ there is IOFFL to challenge the ****e spouted out there.

It's incredibly annoying to see the ineptitude of the DCMNR in dealing with this farce of a situation. There are many people here who point out the various problems, and various solutions, mind you, yet still they fail to take notice and instead listen to civil servants who should have retired on their fat pensions when Telecom Éireann was sold to the [strike]gullible[/strike] public.

eircomtribunal

Sponge Bob wrote:

Therefore it matters not whether Noel reads this because Noel is not going to do anything unless something of a Damascene nature penetrates the sunroof in his spanking new Lexus LS Hybrid jobbie.

As we went to the trouble to send him one real handmade bs-bag, he could at least place that in the Lexus' gloves box...

The biggest and most frivolous misinformation in the DCMNR response to the sbpost is the proposal that the "new goal"(!) of 400 000 broadband subscriptions "set"(!) by minister Dempsey is anything other than the goal of staying at second last place within the EU-15 countries, whereas the DCMNR under minister Dermot Ahern had set the goal (in no less then a policy direction to ComReg) of reaching or better the EU-15 average for broadband penetration by mid 2005.

Let's just recap the spin in the letter:

I set a target of 400,000 broadband subscribers by the end of 2006.Broadband subscription has tripled since then.

The DCMNR quote of IDA boss

The IDA’s chief executive, Sean Dorgan, recently commented that ‘‘we do not lack broadband availability for business’’.

is out of context. It is taken from a speech of TIF's McCabe for a start, and Sean Dorgan specifically referred to the availability of high speed fibre connection in the MAN areas and not to business in a general sense.

What should we make of this fabrication:

In Europe, three in every ten households have broadband.In Ireland, two in ten households have broadband.

? At the end of 2005 the EU15 had a broadband penetration of 14.2 per hundred population, Ireland had one of 6.7. Household penetration is about three times this figure, making it above 4 out of 10 for the EU15 and below 2 out of 10 for Ireland.
Typical strategy of the bull****ter: If facts don't fit your line of argumentation, simply make them up as you please.

P.

Sponge Bob

Dermot Ahern when minister had indeed set the target by relative figures compared to the EU15.

Dermot had another , numeric target but it was not 500,000. Dermot had set a target of 350,000 BB installs by mid 2005. It is now mid 2006 and we may meet that target about 1 year later.

Noel realised in late 2004 that 350,000 by mid 2005 simply would not happen. Noel elected to do nothing, blithely ignored Dermots target, and instead of doing something useful he set out to move the goalposts. He then reset the target to 400,000 or was that 500,000 by end 2006 , see here .

These targets 350k 400k 500k have no legal status and with Noel around to 'set' them they have precious little to do with reality either as we all know

The EU15 average target OTOH is actually a ministerial directive on foot of statute ..... lest anyone forget. We must revisit it to judge whether we are 'compliant'