'Internet has become a basic necessity'

With the objective to expand the internet to household level, Web Surfer has been unveiling different packages. Republica caught up with Web Surfer CEO Suman Lal Pradhan and asked about the challenges his company is facing to expand internet reach in Nepal. [break]



How do you evaluate the growth of internet users in Nepal?



When we started the service 11 years back, the penetration was negligible. The situation today was beyond our imagination at that time. The internet has become a basic necessity now. The growth is positive and I am hopeful the penetration rate will increase further in the next few years.



What do you consider the contributing agent for the growing internet subscribers?



At the beginning phase the only option was dial-up internet. As it required V-SAT for transmission, the technology was expensive and was not in the reach of home users. The cost of the bandwidth was also higher. But now the situation is different as our optical fiber network is connected to India and the cost of bandwidth has also gone down markedly.



The number of internet service providers has also increased which has created competition. The internet entered corporate houses, government offices and to cyber cafés at first and now it is in most of the homes and on hand through smart phones and tablet computers.







Is the internet still beyond the reach of majority of Nepali households?



Although the price of internet has gone down in recent times, the price is still not affordable for the majority. ISPs are not in the condition to provide cheaper packages because of load-shedding. Subsidy from the government and support in expanding infrastructure can help to make internet affordable.



Will your company unveil any new package at Info-Tech?



We have been launching different packages based on WiFi technology. At present we are offering broadband internet outside the capital in partnership with other firms. The service is available in 56 districts.



A package offering 256 kbps is available for Rs 500 per month and this is one of the cheapest rates in the market.



We are offering internet packages starting from Rs 495 per month at present. At the event, we will waive the subscription charge for the customers buying one-year-long package.



Likewise, customers subscribing to unlimited package for six months will get waiver in installation charge.

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