Internet ServiceProviders

When we introduced this category last year, there were just a

handful of ISPs operational–less than 15. The ISP market had just been thrown

open for private players. This year, when we did our first nation-wide ISP

shootout in June, we found about 72 operational ISPs. And many more have started

off since then.

The winner in this category last year was VSNL. Not a

surprise since VSNL had been the only player till then. This year too, VSNL tops

the charts. What’s remarkable is that despite the huge number of ISPs, none

has been able to make much of a dent in VSNL’s position among users. Satyam,

last year’s runner up, did better its points from 24 to 36. MTNL crashed out

from the User’s Choice Club to be replaced by ETH Dishnet, and Caltiger

managed to make an entry too. The ISP that enjoys the maximum current usage is

also VSNL, followed by Satyam.

Quality is the main criterion that users cited for choosing

an ISP. This was true all over India and among all segments–households and

corporate. The corporate segment also considers support and price before they

decide on their ISP. Price is no more a big consideration for households because

most ISPs have slashed their dial-up account rates. Some of them also let you

get an account for free.

A lot of heavy advertising and marketing activity has been

happening in the ISP segment. Accounts are now not just bundled with home PCs,

but with every deal with almost every product, every portal on the Net. Why,

even magazines have free accounts bundled now. There’s a tight fight for

market share. But bandwidth still remains a crucial factor for the success of

these ISPs. With private gateways opening up now, we can expect to see a decline

in our bandwidth troubles.

Cable-based ISPs also made an entrance last year, but things

haven’t moved much in that sector. Now with companies going the convergence

way, this market is about to heat up. New Web appliances, with bundled Internet

accounts are also making their way into Indian homes. We can look forward to

quite a different account of this tale next year.