 |
BYTE MARKS
In Mongolia, satellite Internet rules (for now)
By Burt Lum
Wherever I travel, the Internet is an integral part of my tool kit for survival.
Admittedly, there may be places where you don't want to be connected. But as diverse as the reasons for travel may be, I can't think of anywhere I wouldn't want to tap into the pulse of the global Net.
It's a personal observation, but on the road there's an inundation of one-way information coming at you. The Internet is a perfect tool to make it two-way and balance the sensory overload.
In Mongolia, the Internet is relatively pervasive. Unlike most countries, Mongolia is reliant on satellite communications rather than fiber. Slowly, fiber-optic communication is entering the country.
When this happens, the digital landscape will take a leap forward, and so will Mongolia.
Fortunately for me, my assignment there was with an Internet company called Micom (www.mongol.net). The Internet was never far away. They share the Internet space with others like MagicNet (www.magicnet.mn), MCS, Bodicom, Mobicom and Railcom. Dial-up service is the norm, but slowly ADSL is getting implemented, primarily for businesses.
Surprisingly, cable companies offer no cable-modem service. If Internet development parallels what has happened elsewhere, as soon as cable modems become available, there will be a shift away from dial-up.
I always have fun looking for Internet cafés. Ulaanbaatar has one on nearly every street corner. They range from funky holes-in-the-wall to rather sophisticated business centers. I found one such funky setup on the way to Gandan monastery. The neighborhood adjoining the monastery is a mix of unpaved roads, ger (or yurts) and rustic shacks.
Next to a food stand, the doorway I peered through had a row of idle computers.
In typical Mongolian fashion, there was no sign on the door, and one could only guess what these computers were for. My favorite was near Sukhbaatar Square.
At 40 cents an hour, it was the best deal in the city. ;-)
Reach Burt Lum at www.roughtake.com.
