“What's the point of claiming so many ‘firsts’ if basic services cannot be accessed"

survey on internet use revealed an avalanche of grievances regarding internet service providers (ISPs) particularly against the market leader whose quality is reported to have dropped significantly over the past year. While the reasons were obvious, the overriding impression was that ISPs and regulator were not “doing anything about it”.

One customer, who has subscribed to the same ISP for over 18 years, said that, “over the past few years, their service is zero”. The gripe was not only about data but call connections that “constantly drop or get disconnected”.

She only stays with company because she didn’t want to change her number. She often switches on her phone hotspot to use the internet on her laptop owing to “ultra slow wi-fi data”. For this, she uses a second service provider’s SIM.

“I hope everyone brings up the speed cap after the monthly quota is over,” another respondent said. “It still stuck in the early 2000s which is 64 kbps. Kilobits, not kilobytes. For reference, that's 0.008 MBPS.”

“It’s slow to the point one cannot even browse Google or open their mail, which I think is absurd,” he continued. “This applies for all service providers. They need to update their speed caps to fit the modern criteria.”

One respondent was happy with the ISP but said it could be because there weren’t many users per tower in her area. “I hear 4G being unusable in many areas due to high number of Internet users per tower,” she said. “I hope this survey helps ISPs realize they need to, not only to expand their network coverage, but to ensure customers in areas they cover receive a proper service.”

Another said she used the market leader all her life but switched last year because “they were ripping me off ”. “It was daylight robbery,” she raged. For around 150 to 200GB on average per month, she was being charged over Rs 12,000 and “it only kept increasing”. “The data finishes so fast and when I make a reload, the money disappears! Like God knows what they charge for!” she said.

Many complained of “no value for money” and that the unlimited data packages were not reasonable. One ISP was said to be “quite good” but offered slow service and had a “controversial way to measure usage”. “Regardless of ISP, Sri Lankan customers are taken for a ride,” a respondent declared. “Internet access is becoming an essential thing for life nowadays.””

There are too many variables in the sector ( infrastructure, geographic placement, bureaucracy, ambiguous regulatory environment, public and private businesses competing for same customer base, for example) for one to be able to pinpoint one fault point,” said a survey reply. “Both major service providers exploit this reality to their benefit.”

A large number of respondents complained that data speeds did not match ISP promises and that this area should be regulated, along with volume of data offered in data packages. “Even when data speeds are quite low, the data usage rates are as high as ever,” a consumer said. “Doesn't matter how slow the connection you might have, the data usage seems to sky rocket day by day.”

“The internet speeds are bad, in fact horrifying,” yet another said, adding that there was also no visibility in terms of data usage. But there was no point complaining because the ISP has “a lax attitude”.

“What's the point of claiming so many ‘ firsts’ if basic services cannot be accessed,” echoed another.