[twor99]

Scott,

Today’s cover story on AMCostaRica.com might explain the slowness as of late, although today seems much better.

[twor99]

You tried to simplify it to ease the conversation, and I had to go and complicate it. What a way to make my first post on this site:)

First off, for those who are complaining about the lack of choice here: I.C.E., as a government run monopoly, has done wonders for this country. There are certain things a socialist structure can do that a competitve market just simply won’t provide. Namely, getting power and phone lines to the most remote locations where the cost far outweighs the profit. Costa Rica competes with more developed countries in this aspect, decades ahead of most developing nations. I.C.E. deserves the credit for this.

That being said, I don’t believe the socialist economic structure scales well, and it is time for CR to make the changes necessary to compete. But that’s my capitalist opinion 😉

I’ve been dealing with ISPs here directly, and have thuoght about setting one up myself. There are basically two categories of ISP here: the garage-variety, with none of the amenities you’d find in North America; and HostaRica.

HostaRica(a private company – not government owned) has a monopoly on COLO facilities, and of course get their bandwidth from the Government monopoly, and so have prices that far exceed their counterparts in U.S. and Canada. I toured their brand-new facilities – they have a suite in a building owned by a company that believes the monopolies are going away. The most ideal space I’ve ever seen for a COLO – solid skinned roofing, no internal liquids whatsover, two power grid sources, etc. They’ve also provided suites for RACSA and a few others for RACSA competitors, once the ban is lifted. AT&T is rumored to already have one of the suites and already moving their equipment in. Getting a suite in this building could make building out an ISP a simple endeavor with plenty of flexibility for growth.

As far as the monopolies not disappearing, there are some other factors involved in this than simple constituents opinions that will sway the politicians. CR is trying to get known as the place to get Internet from the rest of the world to South and Central America, competing directly with Panama in this goal. This is BIG money, and great for CR’s stand in the global market. I.C.E. has built San Jose into one of the most advanced metroplexes when it comes to Internet infrastructure, with multiple concentric fiber loops providing fast, redundant bandwidth(although the service attitude itself is still rather “pura vida” to truly compete with U.S. companies) There are at least two submerged fiber cables direct from San Jose to Miami and Southern California alive today, and I think two more being installed. With much of that paid for by Sprint and AT&T. That gives them some say, in my opinion.

Now, if you’re looking for a partner in CR to assist in opening an ISP, look no further.

BTW, I still haven’t read the article. Still learning my way around the site, but I’ll do that now.

[twor99]

I don’t know the article you are referring to, but I’d love to read it.

Nowhere is the Internet “owned” by anyone. It is, after all, an inter-network of millions of individual machines.

That being said, the bandwidth, or “connection to the internet”, in Costa Rica is available through two different companies, both extensions of I.C.E. – the government’s telecommunications division. They sell bandwidth to many privately owned companies that provide hosting facilities, web services, etc. to individuals and companies alike. They also sell to individuals through DSL and cable providers. For the most part they do not control the content whatesover, any more than a comparable company in any other part of the Developed World does.

Costa Rica is also making moves to allow other bandwidth providers the ability to sell there services here. This is a requirement of CAFTA. Many foreign companies are rumored to have already set up a presence here in anticipation, AT&T being one.

Hope this helps shed some light on the issue. I am definitely interested in reading more.

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