Synopsis
There were only six Internet Service Providers in Sri Lanka just over a decade ago. The number jumped quickly to over 20 and included a number of innovative operators. As this report indicates, internet and other forms of data services have been starting to take off in the country, but coverage and accessibility continue to present challenges. Internet user penetration was estimated at around 15% by early 2012. The sophistication of the services available had generally remained low. The early moves to offer broadband internet in the country met with limited success and it seemed that it would be some time before there is a substantial broadband market. However, there had been some promising signs of growth in broadband services from 2007/08 onwards. Of particular interest was the upsurge in activity in the mobile broadband segment of the market; by 2011/2012 this was being seen in terms of significant subscriber numbers. Overall broadband penetration, including mobile broadband, had reached just over 4% by early 2012. As well as providing an overview of Sri Lanka’s internet sector, this report takes a brief look at some of the service providers.
Key developments:
The Information and Communications Technology Agency (ICTA) launched the Lanka Government Cloud (LGC); Sky Network, a subsidiary of SLT, launched its WiMAX service. The TRC began conducting tests on the broadband services offered by the various operators.
Companies covered in this report include:
SLT, SLTNet, SkyNet, Suntel, Lanka Bell, BellNet, Wishya Online (Pvt) Ltd, ITMIN Ltd, Eureka Online (Pvt) Ltd.