Internet services in Bahrain received a significant boost this week following the completion of a major upgrade to the bandwidth capacity of the network.
Batelco has more than doubled the capacity of uplinks on its network to over 400 mega bits per second (mbps). The much larger bandwidth means a faster and more efficient service for all customers using the Internet in Bahrain, whether they use the ADSL or dial up service.
“The move will immediately increase the speed and efficiency of the service for existing customers as well as making sure Bahrain can cope with future demand," said Batelco senior manager data and voice services, Adel Daylami. "However, we have increased the capacity well in excess of the increase in Internet penetration in the Kingdom to make sure more bandwidth is available for each customer using the network.
Internet users in Bahrain grew last year by about 10 percent, while the increase in bandwidth announced this week is more than 100 percent. In the past international Internet traffic was mostly routed through Europe so breakdowns or international line disruptions experienced by cable providers or Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in this region badly congested the network in Bahrain.
Distributing these links between Japan and Europe follows the regional Internet “peer to peer” links between Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait set up late last year. And just as the diversity introduced into the Batelco network means international breakdowns will have less effect on users in Bahrain, these regional “peering” connections mean breakdowns experienced by cable providers and ISPs outside the region will now no longer impact the Gulf states’ local networks.
“The result of these investments mean Internet users in this region can continue local web browsing, and sending and receiving emails between these countries even if there has been a breakdown elsewhere,” added Adel.
In a third innovative step agreed only last month, Bahrain port authorities, coast guards and the Fisheries Directorate are working with Batelco to protect Bahrain’s international underwater telecommunications connection, known as the FOG cable. — (menareport.com)
© 2004 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
