What about Sky Broadband?

strant

I live near the border with Northern Ireland and as part of the basic Sky TV package there they have free Broadband. Can somebody tell me why it is not offered in the Republic. I am in total despair at ever having a dsl Broadband connection where I live. I have been telephoning eircom every week for the last 4 years to find out when they are going to unbundle my local loop. All I have got is waffle.

oscarBravo

I'm pretty sure Sky Broadband in the UK is a DSL product.

watty

100% correct OB

Sky bought easynet in UK. On a substantial number of exchanges they do DSL LLU. On others they resell BT (which unlike reselling eircom in Ireland, you can make a little money on). Sky Satellite customers get a basic package on LLU exchanges free.

Unless Sky buys eircom, it's not going to happen any time soon in Ireland.

Run a WiFi bridge link on a pair of MMDS dishes (8km is easy-ish) to the North to someone that can get DSL there

DSL is separate to LLU. (unbundled loop). You don't need unbundled to get DSL broadband, just an enabled exchange and good enough short enough line (less than 5km for decent speeds).

P.S. The "SkyDSL" product has no connection with Sky or DSL or Broadband, it's a Satellite based Download Accelerator for dialup based on Satellite TV receiver technology.

cgarvey

strant wrote: »

I have been telephoning eircom every week for the last 4 years to find out when they are going to unbundle my local loop. All I have got is waffle.

It's not up to eircom to unbundle the exchange, it's up to the LLU provider (although there are some exchanges that eircom may refuse to unbundle on economic grounds).

Sky haven't bitten at Bitstream (which is eircom's wholesale DSL product that most Irish DSL providers offer), and have a fondness of LLU in the UK (as Watty describes). So unless Sky start up their own LLU service here, or buy an existing provider (Smart & BT, I believe, are the only residential LLU providers at the moment, though there are many more business/corporate LLU service providers).

Sky are unlikely to invest here, because of the comparatively high cost of LLU and the uncertainty introduced by eircom's next-gen network plans.

Fogmatic

Yes - been there, got the dashed hopes, confirmed by Sky - their BB's through the phone line anyway.
I'm in west Donegal, where it may be possible to get the furthest reach of BB from a German satellite firm (mentioned elsewhere in this forum I think, if Strant's interested). But while I was looking into it, my local wireless BB came within reach (I'm about to order it), so I'm lucky!

watty

You want an Irish installer for Satellite. The only German product I know is a self install Statellite "TV receiver" type data solution that accellerates download on dialup. It's not cost effective nor very impressive compared with real VSAT based 2 way satellite.

There are 4 or 5 irish companies installing satellite. One has about x10 more installs that the others.

Fogmatic

I forgot that 'Sky' is confusing - I meant Sky the ubiquitious satellite TV company, and the broadband that it offers as an option in the UK (they told me they have no plans to introduce that option in the Republic). I had wondered why the small print in their UK ads said a fixed line was needed, but was still surprised that it was for the BB (I'd blithely assumed that they just somehow beamed broadband through the ether along with the TV broadcasts!)

I looked into the unconnected company skyDSL last autumn. On their website (teles-skydsl.com) they described their service as 'broadband internet via satellite', and say it's available anywhere in Ireland. I presume it's just one-way (I can't imagine the prices include a user being equipped to beam to a satellite?) They had several speed/price choices, and 6-month contracts. I think it's based in Germany (teles-skyDSL.com).

Europe Online (europeonline.com) is another satellite broadband company I looked into (I read about them somewhere in Boards.ie). It offered 'up to 512kbps' (Well, to someone who's getting 12kbps dialup and sometimes less, it looked worth considering at the time!)

Micky Finn

Pay a visit to National Broadband site at www.nbb.ie for good quality well priced residential satellite broadband from an Irish company.
The service which is provideed by Ses-Astra is available ANYWHERE IN IRELAND.

watty

yes. Europe Online and SkyDSL / Teles are not real Internet by Satellite (just dialup accelerators) unlike the two way VSAT that www.digiweb.ie and www.nbb.ie offer.

Fogmatic

watty wrote: »

yes. Europe Online and SkyDSL / Teles are not real Internet by Satellite (just dialup accelerators) unlike the two way VSAT that www.digiweb.ie and www.nbb.ie offer.

It's also worth cheching if there are any local BB companies transmitting from masts. I don't know where on the border strant is, but for instance I'm in Co. Donegal, near Ardara, and am about to order BB from Fastcom, based in Sligo (www.fastcom.ie). Up to 2mb, 2-way, for 1-off install fee €150, then €40 per month (needs a network port and a power socket).

It depends what you want overall, considering your telephone line use if any and, of course, what you can get!. I can't get Digiweb by satellite here, but I don't know what area it covers (why can't these people just put a simple map on their websites, and save some of us time? (To their great credit though, Digiweb's site is dialup-friendly. This bit of good thinking could improve some other people's sales!).

In my case for instance, BB with inclusive phone bundles doesn't do a lot; we have a €10 pm (+ line rental) dialup+phone UTV bundle, including free offpeak calls to the UK, (which we do a lot), and we seldom exceed the free phone calls (and I want to keep dialup as a standby).

watty

The 2-way satellite services give 100% coverage, unless your site has a large tree or building very close.

You aren't thinking of Digiweb Metro? (similar band, but definitely not satellite).

Fogmatic

I don't know watty, but my mistake! I think I'd selected Letterkenny in Digiweb's availability checker (it's sometimes the quickest way to find out if something's available anywhere in the county - if it's only in 1 place, it always seems to be Letterkenny).
I've just entered my 2 nearest towns (Ardara & Killybegs), & both can get 1 Digiweb service; DSL. But then they've had BB through the phone line for years. I can't get it. (it's unanimous - even Eircom finally admitted it after years). As for mobile BB, forget it (let alone cable).

strant

Thanks folks. I thought Sky Broadband came down via satelite. My most recent call to Eircom about when they planned to enable my local exchange resulted in my being told that they would "begin in September".
I'll believe it when I see it!

ednwireland

strant if you are desperate try ringing these guys - depends where in west donegal you may be able to see one of their masts
http://www.nwewn.com/
we have a business connection from them in donegal town (and eircom dsl sorry) and they have worked quite well for the last 2 months.
ring them on +44 (0)2871 351999
i beleive they have quite a waiting list but you never know (we were done in 2days but we did order a 6mb connection)