The concept is being tested in about 600 cities worldwide, including in the US and Taiwan, where cheap internet access and phone calls are already a normal part of life. Just how seriously the idea is being taken in SA was seen in the large turnout last week for a Digital Cities conference held by BMI-TechKnowledge.
Some are using the resulting telephony and internet services only for their internal use, while others will sell the services to their citizens.
In SA there are also regulatory hurdles to overcome. The provision of basic telephony is still a monopoly enjoyed by Telkom and the cellular operators, while providing internet access requires a value added network services (Vans) licence.
Knysna municipality is pushing the limits by rolling out a broadband network based on Wi-Fi technology.
The network set up by UniNet and RedLinX will give all council staff and residents free local calls using voice over internet protocol, which carries voice calls over a data network, bypassing Telkom's network. The council expects to save R4m in Telkom fees over five years.
By the end of this month residents should have high-speed internet access from R250 a month. Telkom is following Knysna's progress closely, but so far no legal action has been taken.
Deputy Communications Minister Roy Padayachie believes it is time to rethink the regulations that are holding back these innovations.
"It's a way of providing affordable telecommunications services," he told the conference. "It makes perfect sense that every city, town, village and dorp should begin developing broadband strategies, and the department welcomes these initiatives."
At the very least the councils could set up their own networks to cut their internal phone bills. As the projects developed they could provide e-government, e-health, e-commerce and distance education services, and offer affordable telephony and internet access to the public, he said.
Padayachie warned that addressing the legal issues would not be easy as private-sector operators would defend their turf. But innovation had to be encouraged, he said.
The City of Tshwane is working with Storm to roll out broadband services over the power lines and through wireless technologies. One pilot project is to supply internet access, e-mail and telephony to 130 homes, via a fibreoptic backbone that reaches disadvantaged areas where telephone lines are scarce.
Regulations prevent the municipality from selling voice and data services directly to end users but Storm will sell those services through its Vans licence.
Meanwhile, the City of Johannesburg is setting up a high-speed wireless network to connect 500 of its offices to slash the cost of its internal communications. Its technology partners are IBM, Masana Technologies and Multisource Telecoms.
The new network uses microwave technology to move data at 100Mb a second, and is paying for itself in three months by eliminating the cost of Telkom calls, says Multisource CEO Hugh Myres.
Again the council cannot sell voice and data services to its citizens, as it is not licensed to do so.
However, the second network operator may form alliances with local authorities to resell capacity on their networks to the public.
"Whether people will get broadband through their council depends on how liberal the regulations become," said Myres.
"A lot of councils have seen the opportunity to sell telecommunications services as a huge revenue generator. If they are allowed to build their own networks, they would be able to provide broadband services at much lower costs than Telkom."
The main speaker at the conference, Greg Richardson, said simply making broadband services available was not enough. It was essential for the councils to work with the private sector and social groups to deliver local content and to use the networks for improving public safety, transport, education and health care.
Richardson is the founder of Civitium, a US company that has pioneered many such projects.
A common complaint is that private operators will be unwilling to invest in technology if governments are using taxpayers' money to compete with them.
But Richardson compares it to the national postal service, which lets every citizen post a letter cheaply and easily. That has not put private couriers out of business by supplying faster and more personal delivery services.
Moreover, the authorities did not need to finance and provide the services themselves, as a municipality could commission a private service provider to build and operate the network and deal directly with citizens.
"Government involvement doesn't have to mean using public funds or the government owning the networks," he said.
Autor: Lesley Stones
Quelle: AllAfrica, 10.11.2005
