RTE Webchat on Broadband - Wedn May 9th 1400

damien · 08-05-2007 6:08pm #1

http://www.rte.ie/news/elections2007/debate/

Wednesday, 9 May from 2-3pm, the Communications Spokespeople from the four major parties will answer YOUR questions about technology, the internet, new media, and the future of television & radio.

Participating in the debate will be Noel Dempsey, Minister for Communications, Fianna Fáil; Bernard Durkan, Fine Gael Spokesperson for Communications; Tommy Broughan, Labour Party Spokesperson on Communications; and Eamon Ryan, Green Party Spokesman on Communications.

damien · 09-05-2007 12:41am

Questions submitted:

Minister, your Dept stopped new funding for the Group Broadband Scheme in April 05. From then on communities were strung along saying the next funding round was on the way. This happened up to the week when you announced the GBS was due to be scrapped. How can you say there was no takeup?

The new National Broadband Tender is using taxpayer money to subsidise the winner to go into areas where broadband is already available. Doesn't this clash with competition rules?

The National Broadband Tender does not apply to anywhere in Wexford because your map says everyone in Wexford can get broadband, which is patently untrue. What do you have to say to the 1000s in Wexford who can not get broadband and cannot get it under this new scheme?

The broadband tender does not cover anywhere where exchanges are enabled. The failure rate in urban exchanges is 10% and 40% and higher in rural areas. The tender does not apply to them. Why?

Apparently you can only ask 4 questions. Well, until you delete cookies or change browser.

ComReg even before their new powers had the power to fine a company, even if the amount was tiny. They never did. Why will they change their ways now?

Why did the Minister not carry out the recommendations of the Oireachtas committee on broadband but spend 100s of Millions on unconnected Fibre rings?

The new broadband tender fits amazingly well into the eircom broadband roll-out plans. Did the DCMNR plan the tender with the consent of eircom?

More to follow.

stephenjudge · 09-05-2007 1:59am

Here are the questions I submitted. They are not very technical but they are my experiences as a consumer.

1

It is clear from the disgraceful Smart Telecom/Eircom fiasco that Eircom has a monopolistic strangle hold on the communications market and ComReg proved to be an ineffective regulator.What are the parties going to do to promote real competition and enforce a robust regulatory authority.

2

Have you considered that foreign IT investors will not invest in this country, and Irish IT startup's will not succeed if there is an unstable outdated communications infrastructure and no competition in the market. Comment please.

3

Our communications infrastructure is a key resource for our economy, yet it is under the control of one dominating company that shows a blind disregard for ComReg. Consumers are now afraid to switch to alternative providers because of lengthy delays and the threat of being cut off. Comment please.

4

On the wireless mobile network I can switch providers in 4 hours and keep my number. On the broadband network it has taken me 6 months and I had to change my number. This is ridiculous. When are you going to bring our crumbling network up to international standards.

removefiannafail · 09-05-2007 9:01am

I dont think there is much any of us can add to those splendid questions. Dempsey however wont even attempt to defend the indefensible. All we will get is a litany of promises and election propaganda .we will be told that they will do-during the next 10 years- what they were incompetent, incapable, and unwilling to do during the last 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xsegw04LTAE

Slaanesh · 09-05-2007 9:11am

Ever think dempsey looked like that janitor out of scrubs?

and

Oh and I asked the question relating to broadband in Kilmessan etc etc ...

stephenjudge · 09-05-2007 9:16am

removefiannafail

It may be the case that Dempsey will respond as you say, I however would be more interested in what the opostion representatives on the Webchat will have to say. Don't forget we will have Eamon Ryan, Spokesperson on Communications,Green Party; and we will have Tommy Broughan, Spokesperson for Communications, Labour Party.

lukin · 09-05-2007 10:23am

I asked the minister did he think it was amusing (I wasn't sure if "ironic" was the right word) that people who don't have broadband (i.e. me) won't even be able to listen to this webcast! You couldn't make it up.

Sully · 09-05-2007 12:44pm

Its not allowing me to submit. Asks me to only submit "letter and numeric characters" in the question field.

All I have is fecking letters. I removed all full stops and any other characters I had in. I was trying to ask;

Minister Dempsey When are you planning on rolling out fibre to the home in Ireland to catch up with the plans in the UK Surley massive invesment is needed to catchup with our neighbours

Our current telecommunications infrastructure in Ireland is relatively pre historic to say the least

DaBreno · 09-05-2007 1:22pm

Got that too. I dont think it likes the carrige returns. Make sure you have no spaces after the last character in your piece. Worked for me.

ps. I asked whats the odds of those of us in rural Ireland ever seeing a service fast enough for Internet TV.

RangeR · 09-05-2007 2:02pm

I take it back. Don't know why I was thinking it would be a video feed.....

DaBreno · 09-05-2007 2:08pm

They must be having some sort of problems, I can see "All: test" being displayed on the page, debugging I suspect!

Slaanesh · 09-05-2007 2:11pm

Stephen Hayden: Do you use the internet (not email) regularly and what technologies have you personally embraced over the past few years

Noel Dempsey: I use the internet pretty regularly, not just for emails. The mobile phone with all of the emails and so on I use on a regular basis, I use a blackberry for that. I'm in constant communication with the office and with home. I have an iPod as well but I haven't figured out how to use it yet!

Talk about cherry picking.

RangeR · 09-05-2007 2:14pm

Indeed. Cherry picking at it's finest.

I suppose they didn't have the bandwidth for a video stream :eek:

Slaanesh · 09-05-2007 2:17pm

Aoife Byrne: When will Ireland have 100% broadband availability?

Noel Dempsey: The figure at the moment according to the experts is about 90%. There will always be blackspots just for technical reasons. We have recently rolled out a tender for a national broadband scheme to cover the areas that have not yet been covered. That process will be concluded in the Autumn. We will have broadband throughout the country after that.

*splutters over keyboard*

damien · 09-05-2007 2:17pm

I just sent in:

What's your favourite colour? We seem to be on a theme of asking nonsense questions so I wondering could I ask that.

delly · 09-05-2007 2:18pm

Just asked:

How detrimental to the Irish economy has our backward approach to broadband been, and how long to you think it will be before we fully recover from such a late start?

DaBreno · 09-05-2007 2:18pm

Quote the Minister "That process[Tender] will be concluded in the Autumn. We will have broadband throughout the country after that. "

WHEN after that?

thebman · 09-05-2007 2:19pm

Aoife Byrne: When will Ireland have 100% broadband availability?
Noel Dempsey: The figure at the moment according to the experts is about 90%. There will always be blackspots just for technical reasons. We have recently rolled out a tender for a national broadband scheme to cover the areas that have not yet been covered. That process will be concluded in the Autumn. We will have broadband throughout the country after that.

Lol @ 90% coverage claim!

damien · 09-05-2007 2:19pm

Dempsey may be incompetent but next to Durkan he's Steve Jobs.

delly · 09-05-2007 2:24pm

Even more LoL's @ 'Andrew', or is that Bertie hiding behind his keyboard?

unidentifiable · 09-05-2007 2:24pm

Any chance this shambolic episode will make an appearance the last word this evening Damien?? Looks like the debate happen on Boards.ie

Niall_Stevenson · 09-05-2007 2:27pm

Jeez,

It's about as interesting and engaging as watching a slow-motion video of paint drying.

Bernard Durkan calling Dempsey a "nice guy"?

Pass the bucket please.

Niall

damien · 09-05-2007 2:30pm

This is as bad as Questions and Answers where FF can dictate how many seats their supporters get.

delly · 09-05-2007 2:34pm

IrelandOffline on the scene, w00t!

Slaanesh · 09-05-2007 2:34pm

IrelandOffline: The new broadband tender fits amazingly well into the eircom broadband roll-out plans. Did the DCMNR plan the tender with the consent of eircom?

Noel Dempsey: We didn't plan it with the consent of anybody. We planned it on the basis of what we thought would succeed. We mapped ireland, where coverage is available, and saw where the black spots were and put that out to tender. We don't want to run into State aid difficulty. We have to comply with those rules and that's why they were designed.

Ick.

daaft · 09-05-2007 2:36pm

Slaanesh wrote:

Aoife Byrne: When will Ireland have 100% broadband availability?

Noel Dempsey: The figure at the moment according to the experts is about 90%. There will always be blackspots just for technical reasons. We have recently rolled out a tender for a national broadband scheme to cover the areas that have not yet been covered. That process will be concluded in the Autumn. We will have broadband throughout the country after that.

I asked what experts were feeding Noel Dempsey these lies, and why did he believe them? I wish now I'd stayed away. It's just election hype - again - it's not going to make a difference and is only making me angry and frustrated.

jbkenn · 09-05-2007 2:41pm

This is going nowhwere.. veerrryy sloooowly

jbkenn

daaft · 09-05-2007 2:44pm

delly wrote:

Just asked:
Quote:
How detrimental to the Irish economy has our backward approach to broadband been, and how long to you think it will be before we fully recover from such a late start?

I asked similar, I hope a lot of people did. I cannot fathom how they can't realise what harm the lack has already done.

RangeR · 09-05-2007 2:47pm

The debate is a joke. I'll be surprised if they ask another one of the IO questions. They can claim that they gave IO airtime by asking the one question.

No serious questions are being asked. Not the tough ones where the answers don't make Dempsey look good.

*This one line withdrawn. Should have read the site a bit more.... anyway...*

I'm off.

Niall_Stevenson · 09-05-2007 2:47pm

daaft wrote:

I asked similar, I hope a lot of people did. I cannot fathom how they can't realise what harm the lack has already done.

Dude,

The truth is that they know, but don't care.

Niall

niallb · 09-05-2007 2:49pm

Hmmm,
more television related questions required.
They seem to like those!

RTE Webchat on Broadband - Wedn May 9th 1400

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