Communications in Mauritius

=History=

Basic telephony was introduced in Mauritius in October 1883. The first telephone line was set up between the Colony Governor's residence in Reduit and Government House in Port Louis. [ [http://www.icta.mu/documents/publications/ictview.pdf The ICT Sector in Mauritius - an Overview] - Retrieved October 21, 2006]

General Statistics

Telephones - main lines in use:359,000 (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular:940,000 (2007)(77% of the population)

Telephone system:small system with good service
"domestic:"primarily microwave radio relay trunk system
"international:"country code - 230; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia

Radio broadcast stations:AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002)

Radios:420,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:2 (plus several repeaters) (1997)

Televisions:258,000 (1997)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):4 (2008)

Internet users:180,000 (2005)

Country code (Top level domain): MU

Broadband Internet access

Mauritius has several operators like Mauritius Telecom, Nomad, Mahanagar Telephone Mauritius Limited(MTML) & Emtel. Each operator uses a different technology to provide Internet access. Nomad makes use of WiMax, MTML uses CDMA 2000 and Emtel uses HSDPA(3.5G).The monopoly is retained by Mauritius Telecom(MT) which provides dial-up & ADSL services over existing telephone lines.

Excessive Pricing in Mauritius

It should be pointed out that the price offered by Mauritian ISPs for broadband connection is seen as very expensive for the middle class. Comparing the prices with European countries, there is no big difference. But the real difference lies in the fact that an average Mauritian household earns Rs. 10 000 ($200), which is several times less that of a European. Thus most Mauritians cannot afford the high prices set up my Mauritius telecom (which has the monopoly of the internet services).

Further, it seems that Mauritius telecom does not care to invest into developing the Internet sector since they follow a policy to merely maximise profit, even if that means paying no attention to neither the people nor the country. Even if MT made a profit exceeding Rs. 3 billion ($100 million) in the financial year 2007-2008, the President of MT, Dasse Thomas said (in the "weekend" newspaper of the 25th May 2008 http://www.lemauricien.org/weekend/in080525.htm) that no significant investment is to be expected from Mauritius telecom.

Nomad Wireless Interent Offer

Nomad is the first wireless broadband service in Mauritius, allowing you to enjoy unlimited High Speed Internet access at affordable prices. Based on the WiMAX international standard, Nomad Home offeRs a broadband, High-Speed Internet experience – without wires.

No telephone line is required to get connected. Just plug the Nomad Rabbit Modem into your computer and start surfing within a minutes. Your broadband connection will be transmitted from the Nomad Wireless Network directly to your computer, through your Nomad Rabbit Modem.

Now you can enjoy unlimited High-Speed Internet access any time, anywhere – in complete freedom!

Benefits of Nomad Home:Nomad Modem

• No wires: No telephone line required • Always-on: 24/7, unlimited Internet access • Nomadic: Stay connected anywhere*, anytime

Nomad Tariff:

• 64 kbit/s - Rs 550 + Vat/month • 128 kbit/s - Rs 890 + Vat/month • 512 kbit/s - Rs 1,900 + Vat/month

Where to Get Nomad Home?

Nomad Home is available at our stands.For a complete list of PC Resellers who carry Nomad, click here.

How to Sign Up?

Signing up for Nomad is easy and can be completed within minutes, allowing you to start surfing the Internet as soon as you get a Rabbit modem.

1 First, make sure you have your identity card (or passport) and a proof of address (e.g. your CEB bill.) 2 Visit one of the Nomad Stands closest to your locality. 3 Choose a Nomad package and complete the on-stand procedure to obtain your Rabbit modem. 4 Connect your Rabbit modem to any PC in the coverage area, power it up and start surfing!

Mauritius Telecom's offer

[http://www.servihoo.com/ouroffers/wooadslhome.php WANADOO ADSL]

Mauritius Telecom also offers triple play Internet access (My. T Surf), VOIP (My. T Talk) and Video-on-Demand (My. T Watch) package called [http://www.myt.mu/index.php My.T] .

My. T differs from Wanadoo ADSL in the sense that it has an Internet Data Volume Threshold (guaranteed usage allowance) for prioritised Quality of Service. Once a customer has exceeded his guaranteed usage allowance, he will have less priority QoS and may consequently get lower speeds. In addition to that My. T also offer a 2 Mbit/s local connection speed for all offers.

* *If a customer exceeds his guaranteed usage allowance, he won't be billed any excess usage but may experience lower speeds after exceeding his usage, since his Internet connection is no longer prioritised.

Prices do not include Value Added Tax (15% over price) & other costs like modem rental, installation fee, line conversion, etc.

ee also

* Mauritius Telecom

Notes and references

External links

* http://www.nomad.mu/
* [http://www.icta.mu/icta/home/ Information and Communication Technologies Authority (ICT Authority)] - The Authority is the national regulator for the ICT sector and Postal Services in Mauritius

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