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Ireland in dark on broadband services - Simon Coveney TD

From 09 Oct 2007 Evening Echo


MANY readers may zone out at the very mention of the word broadband.
But, before you stop reading at this point, why not see broadband as a well-surfaced road. In Ireland, the condition of this road is in areas acceptable, in others it's full of potholes and in certain places just impassable.
Such a basic infrastructure is necessary for simply living and getting around and certainly for doing business. Information technology, software development and telecommunications are all valuable contributors to the Irish economy.
However, growth and job creation in these sectors has happened in spite of a poor telecommunications infrastructure.
One thing is certain though, the future will not be so positive without a dramatic improvement in the affordable availability of modern telecommunications and broadband connectivity. Everyone agrees that world-class infrastructure is vital for Ireland's future. Outside of Dublin, we have correctly attached real importance to developing a quality road and rail network.
We emphasise the importance of links between regional airports and major centres of population.
The recent debate on Shannon Airport's link with Heathrow was an understandable expression of concern by business people and public representatives alike.
However, we don't seem to attach the same importance to the need to connect regions of the country to broadband.
Perhaps this is because large scale physical transportation infrastructure is easier to see than broadband cable.
Without broadband, certain regions will be left behind in the effort to attract investment and promote job creation.
Broadband has simply become essential for modern communications and the running of almost every business activity.
One could be forgiven for thinking that broadband is available everywhere and that a phone call will see you connected within a day — that's if adverts are to be believed.
It is true for some locations, but certainly not of all.
In most rural locations, a broadband connection is either limited or a major problem, and in many areas of urban towns and cities connectivity can be problematic.
The reason for our poor broadband infrastructure is that we haven't had sufficient cable or wire connecting into homes and businesses in order to enable a broadband connection.
The wiring of the country has largely been controlled by eircom and it hasn't upgraded its network with enough urgency to keep pace with many other countries.
The other problem is that eircom has been slow to make its network available to other broadband operators, despite being required to do so by the telecommunications regulator. In the last year, things have improved and eircom has been investing heavily in broadband connections and has opened up its network to competition.
The Government needs to encourage further progress, and, where necessary, subsidise the rolling out of broadband to parts of the country that do not have a sufficient population base to make rollout commercially viable.
If this does not happen, we will have a widening 'broadband divide' in the country, which will add to the woes of already isolated communities.
The Government has been talking about the need to roll-out broadband to the entire country for years, but it simply hasn't happened.
Progress has been made, but far too slowly.
Up to 20% of the country still has no access to broadband, unless they chose to pay for a satellite dish to beam it in.
The internet is a reality now for most families. Whether it's a teenager updating a blog, a student re searching a project or someone booking flights, the internet is rapidly moving from being a luxury to becoming a necessity to function normally.
Ryanair is a good example of the need to have internet access.
The airline is increasingly moving to a paperless, internet-based system where those who choose to check-in in person at the airport are levied with an additional charge and an additional queue.
Without a broadband connection, having to use a basic dial-up connection, accessing a site like this is a marathon process.
The roll-out of broadband will be one of my key priorities as an oppdsition spokesperson on communications.
The National Development Plan allocates €250 million to the task.
That budget needs to be well spent and deliver 100% connectivity to the whole country as soon as possible.
In the meantime, we should be measuring progress on a monthly basis.

Wheres Walt Mo

I dont care

"So you've seen it in an email before. Its been around the net for years."
"That is older than the hills"
"That ain't Dublin"
"That is my home town"
"I just saw it, liked it and decided to post about it"


I don't give a fuck
I though it funny.