broadband strategies handbook.pdf - Khazar University

wireline telephone network (measured by subscriptions) in the developingworld, and Pakistan has the fourteenth largest. In terms of CATV subscriptions,India ranks second and Pakistan ranks third among developingnations. Nevertheless, wireline infrastructure is relatively limited comparedto other regions, and the number of telephone lines and CATV connectionsfor broadband services is relatively low. Some countries have been late toaward mobile broadband spectrum that would trigger intermodal broadbandcompetition. On the demand side, the region is the second poorestdeveloping region after Sub-Saharan Africa, and levels of education are relativelylow.India was the first country in the region to adopt a broadband policy in2004 (India, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology2004). However, it has not achieved the goals set. The country published aconsultative document on a new broadband policy, and in December 2010the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) issuedbroadband recommendations. 12 A key strategy is to develop an open-accessnational fiber optic backbone network connecting all localities with morethan 500 inhabitants by 2013.Pakistan published a broadband policy in 2004 (see Pakistan, Ministry ofInformation Technology 2004). But broadband deployment has not lived upto expectations—the number of broadband subscribers in 2007 was onlyhalf of the level targeted for that year and well short of the half million targetedfor 2010. In an effort to accelerate broadband take-up, a universal servicefund (USF) is being used to subsidize the deployment of broadbandthroughout the country. 13Other South Asian nations have also adopted or are developing broadbandplans (ITU 2010a). However, programs that would address demandsideaffordability issues are limited (table 7.1).Sri Lanka, which was one of the first countries in South Asia to award 3Gspectrum, has the second highest penetration, the lowest tariffs, and thefastest mobile broadband speeds in the region. Sri Lanka’s broadband experienceis highlighted in a case study at the end of this chapter.Sub-Saharan AfricaThe Sub-Saharan Africa region faces tremendous barriers in broadeningaccess to broadband. It starts from a very low base, with limited wirelinetelephone networks and practically no CATV networks on the supply side,coupled with demand-side bottlenecks including the lowest per capitaincome and fewest years of schooling of all developing regions.312 Broadband Strategies Handbook