Nepal Telecom (NT) on Friday launched Fibre to the Home (FTTH) broadband internet service based on fibre optic technology which provides high speed internet connection besides voice service and television. The state-owned company will install optical fibre to the customer’s premises to provide this service replacing the current copper cable network.
Under the service, customers can use high speed broadband internet service ranging from 1 Mbps to 100 Mbps. They can also get IP-based television and voice service through the single fibre.
In the first phase, the service will be available in the Durbar Marg, Kamaladi and Jamal areas in the Kathmandu valley through its service counter located at Sundhara. According to the company, the service will be expanded to Thamel, Lazimpat, Chabahil, Battisputali, Dhumbarahi, Kuleshwor, Kalanki, Balkhu, Kupondol and Satdobato within a month.
NT also plans to extend the service to major cities like Bharatpur, Pokhara, Birgunj, Biratnagar and Butwal this month. Unveiling the service, Minister for Information and Communication Minendra Rijal urged NT to be more qualitative in the data market along with voice service.
“The people want faster and more reliable internet service, so the main focus should be on providing better service in this competitive data market,” he said. He expressed the hope that the FTTH service would add more value to NT and help it to increase its market share. Meanwhile, Buddhi Prasad Acharya, officiating managing director of NT, said that the company aimed to expand its market to the corporate world through this new technology.
“We have not been able to go to corporate users to the extent expected due to lack of high speed broadband internet but this state-of-the-art FTTH technology will help us to expand the data market among corporate houses,” he said. Acharya added that the service would be provided to corporate clients in the initial phase.
NT offers two packages under its FTTH internet service, unlimited and volume-based. Prices for the unlimited internet package range from Rs 7,600 to Rs 8,000 per month depending on the bandwidth. Similarly, for the volume-based package, prices
range from Rs 1,140 for 20 GB with a validity of one month to Rs 23,040 for 480 GB with a validity of 12 months.
According to Ranjit Lohia, senior engineer at NT, customers have to buy a CPE device which costs Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000, depending on the type of the internet package desired. The company said it would provide two telephone lines which can be used for voice services at Rs 200 per month with 175 free calls.
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