[kictanet] Coming Soon: Free Internet to Rural Areas (There is never a free ride)

Thu Nov 19 08:24:35 EAT 2015

Good points @Mwendwa,
Plse share the specific url that captures the IGF 2015 discussions on the same.
regards.
walu.
      From: Mwendwa Kivuva via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
 To: jwalu at yahoo.com 
Cc: Mwendwa Kivuva <Kivuva at transworldafrica.com>
 Sent: Wednesday, November 18, 2015 2:05 PM
 Subject: Re: [kictanet] Coming Soon: Free Internet to Rural Areas (There is never a free ride)

Net Neutrality and Zero Rating was the trending topic in this year's IGF in Brazil. People took sides depending on their interests. For example,  a research in Asia revealed that zero rated services were an entry point for people who had no access to Internet, and those who used zero rated services went on and converted to paid users after seeing the benefits of the Internet. Another research shows that people don't use the Internet not because of the cost, but because they don't need it. Weird conclusion I can say. And some interesting facts is, in communities where zero rated services were the norm, the users did not know the difference between the Internet and Facebook. That is a major problem if you ask me. Another research that Mozilla Foundation was involved in found that when users are given Internet bundles, they accessed diverse types of websites, not just FB and Wikipedia. But the big question was, who funded these types of research? An interested party would of course ensure research results are tilted to their interests.All that not withstanding, we should pay keen interests to the following points,
1. Zero rating is illegal in most of Europe,  And USA. Even in Brazil, zero rating is not acceptable. Ask yourself why.
2. Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) is a regulator and not a policy maker. Without policy on Net Neutrality, they have nothing to enforce thus leaving market players to their own devices, including abuse. Us the community, in an all inclusive manner should develop a Net Neutrality policy that can be adopted.
3. CA are usually given targets to ensure universal coverage of communication services. I am sure they are very happy to maintain the status quo since they will report zero rated services as a metric of increased access. This will be a big lie because they will have denied the rural folks access to the Internet. We all know one website is not the Internet. The best practice is to have the regulator pressure telcos increase rollout in under-served regions as part of their Universal Service obligations. 
4. Zero rating infringes on fundamental human rights by denying users access to the Internet. It may be a conspiracy to keep developing countries in the darkness of the information age. Refer to point 1 above.
5. Let us advocate for universal coverage, better utilisation of USF, telecommunication infrastructure sharing, increased road coverage, accessible wayleaves and cable ducts,  and affordable energy. All these will ensure the COST of internet comes down to a level where every citizen can afford.
6. Countries with no proper access to the Internet will find it difficult to participate in the Internet Economy. And isn't the entire world now an Internet economy? There is more, but these points are what comes to mind.(errors and omissions are mine, sent on the go using a handheld device. No zero rated service used)On Nov 18, 2015 12:51 PM, "Davis Onsakia via kictanet" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

This is extremely a 'slippery' topic to deal with. 
It is based on the 'walled garden' concept where you can access the shamba but pick what only I've planted there - might not have considered your welfare when planning on the garden and the crops there. Hence you have the option not to access my 'fenced garden' and live on or access my garden and specifically enjoy what I've there!
Some people have argued that it is better to have some 'Internet', do note the quotation marks, to some areas of the Net like FB, Wikipedia than no Internet at all! Clearly this violate the net neutrality spirit, but then what it is the lesser evil? No Internet at all? What am I willing to pay or relinquish so that I can access the 'Free Basics'? Clearly there is nothing for free! Can the government step in and give the bare minimums for this offering? This might be my preferred approach - some 'free Internet' knowing well what it means, than no Internet at all.
Leaving the whole thing unregulated is not very palatable to me....I think countries like India have chosen this route, stand to be corrected though. 

Best Regards,
Davis M Onsakia
"One doesn't discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time."

On 18 November 2015 at 12:31, Liz Orembo via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

Perhaps its time we start asking how far the government has gone in deploying NOFBI and its last mile connectivity. Universal access fund?We will continue facing these kind of net neutrality issues and other related problems because much of our internet access policies rely on mobile networks.On Nov 18, 2015 9:39 AM, "Ali Hussein via kictanet" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

Mildred
Zero-Rating means it's only free when accessing say Facebook. :-) Sorry, not as free as you think. And the business model is one based on advertising. It's instructive that Facebook for example uses ARPU as a key metric to track performance. 

Ali HusseinPrincipalHussein & Associates+254 0713 601113 / 0770906375
Twitter: @AliHKassimSkype: abu-jomoLinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassimBlog: www.alyhussein.com

"Discovery consists in seeing what everyone else has seen and thinking what no one else has thought".  ~ Albert Szent-Györgyi
Sent from my iPad
On 18 Nov 2015, at 9:10 AM, Mildred Achoch via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

I agree with Mr. Ali Hussein that there is never a free ride. Those big boys and girls of the Internet have seen an opportunity to profit from the lack of reliable and affordable Internet in rural areas. I don't know how they will profit but I am sure they have done their research. These people don't think short-term. They stand to gain in the long run.

On the other hand, FREE Internet in rural areas?! Wow! Speaking as someone whose work involves a lot of heavy Internet use, and who has no office to access it through, this is very good news! I can even consider moving to these rural areas once the deal is up and running. I am sure there are many more people like me. Maybe this will promote urban-rural migration, thereby contributing to the development of rural areas?

Regards,
Mildred Achoch.

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On Wed, Nov 18, 2015 at 8:52 AM, James Kagwe via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

Looking at it from the other side of the fence, the truth is that Internet service providers in Kenya including the Telcos have maintained the price of internet quite high even for the middle class living in urban areas. Most of us can only enjoy reliable internet in the office only. This is even after Kenya connected to at least 4 undersea cables.Given the prevailing circumstances there's no hope for reliable and affordable Internet to the rurals in the near future. This is with the benefits of Internet as demonstrated by research not withstanding. I don't see anything wrong with what they're doing. In any case we in Nairobi and other urban areas will continue paying the unreasonable costs as we have been doing in the past.JamesOn Nov 18, 2015 8:16 AM, "Ali Hussein via kictanet" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

Listers
I'm really concerned about the continued silence of the Regulator regarding Zero-Rating of certain services bundled by telcos in this country in partnership with the big boys and girls of the Internet. Are we not clear how this continued silence and tacit approval of this practice that had basically been outlawed in their home countries is going to impact our nascent Internet economy?  
http://www.nation.co.ke/business/Free-Internet-to-rural-areas/-/996/2960730/-/10o59uez/-/index.html
We deserve some action from the Communication Authority. 

Ali HusseinPrincipalHussein & Associates+254 0713 601113 / 0770906375
Twitter: @AliHKassimSkype: abu-jomoLinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassimBlog: www.alyhussein.com

"Discovery consists in seeing what everyone else has seen and thinking what no one else has thought".  ~ Albert Szent-Györgyi
Sent from my iPad
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