Our Internet
customer base has been growing since it was launched in
1996.
Growing like no other
Internet is an extremely valuable tool for both individuals
and businesses to access and share the global resource of information
in a cost effective manner. SLTNet, the largest Internet service
provider in Sri Lanka caters for the entire community in the
island, residential or corporate, irrespective of the needs
by offering the best packages to suit each individual's need.
SLT provides simple dial-up, dedicated to broadband Internet
services through its Internet Service Provider (ISP) SLTNet.
SLT has points- of- presence (POPs) across the country and this
allows our subscribers to access the Internet for the cost of
a local call through a single number (150) . SLT’s unmatched
backbone bandwidth of 90 Mbps is of superior quality.
SLT currently offers Internet leased lines at 64 kbps, 512 kbps
and 2 Mbps, mail server services, web and Domain Name Server
(DNS) hosting are other value added products for business customers.
SLT also provides Internet services to most of the other Internet
Service Providers (ISP).
Our Internet customer base has been growing since it was launched
in 1996. In 2000 our service was re-launched as SLTNet in pursuing
a strategy based on competitive pricing, quality of service
and access speed. As part of the re launch, rates were lowered
and a help desk was established. At the end of 2003 SLT had
44,731 Internet dial-up customers which represent over 50% of
the market.
SLT launched a Internet prepaid card to tap the unsubscribed
dial-up market. The Internet Prepaid Card is a prepaid calling
card that lets the user to surf the Internet 24 hours a day
with comfort of flat rates per minute while avoiding the many
hassles in application, activation and monthly billings. It
is ideal for travellers and those who want to have a feel of
service/quality before takingup a permanent account. Prepaid
card has had an extremely good response and at the end of 2003
over 100,000 cards were sold.
High
Speed SLT Broadband launched
An Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (SLT Broadband) service was launched
in July 2003. In just five and a half months our customer base
has reached 2,800.
SLT Broadband has boomed because of the huge benefits it offers to customers.
SLT Broadband offers speeds of 512 kbps and 2 Mbps, a giant leap from
the ISDN speeds of 128 kbps. The ‘always on’ connection
allows business and home users to be constantly in contact with
customers, suppliers, friends and family. Access to the Internet,
phone and fax are provided on the same line and therefore increases
the productivity. In addition un-metered Internet access makes
budgeting easier. Customers do not pay additional telephone
charges but only a monthly rental.
Adding more Value Added Services
Internet customers are now provided with an E fax service enabling
them to direct their mails to fax. Internet Roaming was introduced
in 2000 and this created an interest particularly among those
customers who travel frequently. It enable them to use their
Internet account while travelling. The Roaming Service is now
available in 150 countries through 15,000 ISP POPs. Web Hosting,
Domain Name Server (DNS) Hosting and Top Level Domain Name Registrations
are some of the other services our customers have access to.
SLT has been progressively increasing its value added Internet
services. SLT has also been winning over major broadcasters
for web-casting services (video streaming) as a result of the
superior quality it has been able to offer over other competitors.
This includes on-line and on-demand video with rate adaptation
based on an access mechanism.
Wi-Fi Zone launched at BIA
In October 2003 SLT launched a Wi-Fi Internet Zone at the Bandaranaike
International Airport (BIA). The Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) Internet
Zone, popularly known as the Wi-Fi Hotspot, is a wireless high
speed broadband network that caters to travellers using BIA.
It enables those with a laptop (with a Wi-Fi enabled PC card)
or a hand held device (with a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
adapter) to access the Internet and surf the web at speeds of
up to 11 Mbps. It is easy to access and does not require a waiting
period. The Wi-Fi Hotspot can be accessed with a SLT prepaid
Internet Card which is sold at a number of shops in the BIA
airport.
The Wi-Fi Internet Zone enables both the business traveller
and the leisure traveller to keep in touch with office and home,
and to surf the net for information and entertainment while
waiting to board their aircraft. SLT plans to introduce Wi-Fi
zones at other public places including hotels and shops.
Internet Rates Revised
In a bid to make the ‘net’ more accessible, SLT
revised its Internet tariff structure in 2003. It did this by
increasing the call unit duration for SLTNet internet access
on ‘150’. During peak hours the seconds per call
unit will be 120 and during the economy hours the seconds per
call unit will be 360. The discounted time is 540 seconds per
unit. The recent tariff rebalance exercise helped this.
Expanding and Strengthening Our
Network
Expanding our access network, core network and Border Gateway
is essential to improve the performance and reliability of all
Internet related services. Our network components are monitored
on a 24 hour basis by the Network Operations Centre (NOC). We
will constantly strengthen our security by strengthening and
restructuring our network architecture. SLT’s IP Backbone
will also be strengthened. SLT’s network is currently
connected to Global Tier - 1 uplink providers UUNET and NTT/
Verio at a capacity of 45 Mbps each. We hope to upgrade this
capacity in the next phase to 155 Mbps.
