Broadband wireless Internet connection most cost-effective for small business

Traditional Internet access restrictive and costly - wireless is the way to go for entrepreneurs

A growing number of entrepreneurs and small business owners are taking a close look at the cost of telecommunications and investigating ways to reduce expenses. It's not just voice calls that are under scrutiny - data calls form an increasingly large component of overall telephone costs. With the quest to save costs at the heart of any business, it pays entrepreneurs and small business owners to compare the different telecommunications services available.

"There is an ever-expanding range of telecommunications options open to owners of small to medium-sized companies," says Winston Smith, portfolio manager of broadband products at Sentech.

"In the past, business owners only had the option of simple dial-up connections over traditional telephone lines, but now there is a host of other services available to choose from including ADSL, ISDN, leased-line and broadband wireless," he says.

Most small businesses will run one or more data connections, depending on their business needs and associated costs to the business.

Says Smith: "A small business that's just getting started is likely to have financial constraints so it will have to monitor all expenses carefully."

Let's look at the options available:

The current average dial-up cost of an Internet service provider (ISP) is about R80 per month. The costs associated with this service range from R386 per month for low usage (less than 1 hour per day) to R1 000 per month for high usage (more than two hours a day). Bear in mind that slow data speeds could increase the costs to the business, as more time will be spent online.

The current average dial-up cost of an ISP is R140 per month and costs between low-end and high-end usage range between R450 and just over R1 000 per month.

Says Smith: "Dial-up and ISDN are really only beneficial when the usage patterns for the small business are very low - less than one hour per day. By comparison, a fixed-cost service like MyWireless 128 or 256 will better suit requirements if more Internet access is needed."

But what about ADSL? (asynchronous digital subscriber line)

Smith says the ADSL access service is offered exclusively by Telkom. Small businesses have the option to buy the Internet access services separately from either Telkom Internet or other ISPs that resell the service.

Costs are as follows:

* R800 per month for the ADSL access service (businesses)
* R250 - R350 per month for the Internet access - price dependant on the ISP
* R404 activation fee;
* R1 000 - R1 500 once-off fee for the ADSL modem
* R250 - R300 per month per additional account (required when subscriber reaches the 3GB data transfer limit per month)

The total cost can range between R1 150 and R1 450 per month if two accounts are used - this is the norm for small companies.

A leased-line costs between R 4 000 and R5 500 a month - typically beyond the reach of most small businesses.

The advantages of making use of broadband wireless Internet services include benefits such as fixed monthly costs - regardless of bandwidth used, portability within coverage areas, no telephone line required and therefore not affected by cable theft.

For entrepreneurs and small business owners - two cost-efficient packages are suggested: MyWireless 256Kbps and MyWireless 512Kbps, both available in a bundled and unbundled option.

The bundled packages are priced at R849 and R1 499 respectively per month over 24 months, which could constitute about half the price of an average fixed-line service for small office users. This price package includes the modem.

The unbundled option packages are priced at R699 and R1 349 respectively per month for a 24-month contract and R749 and R1 429 per month over 12 months. The modem of R3 500 is not included in the unbundled price package.

There is a R500 once-off activation fee for all the above-mentioned packages.

Says Smith: "With the portability of the MyWireless Internet service, entrepreneurs can use the same Internet service at home and at the office without any additional costs - resulting in no surprises on your bill at the end of the month.

"The majority of our business user-base, have an absolute requirement to have an 'always on' Internet access service for e-mail, online banking and e-commerce. MyWireless offers the most cost-effective broadband Internet connection for small businesses and entrepreneurs today.

For detailed information on MyWireless Internet connection, visit www.sentech.co.za or contact the call centre at 0860 736 832.