Internet in Singapore
Encyclopedia
In Singapore
, there are 6,791,000 broadband Internet subscribers (as of June 2010). and household broadband penetration was at 82% the same year. There are four major Internet Service Provider
s in Singapore, namely, SingNet
, StarHub
, Pacnet
and M1. Over the years, the Singapore Government have been promoting the usage of broadband Internet access, as part of its Intelligent Nation 2015 (iN2015) masterplan.
Singapore, as a small densely populated island nation and a pioneer, continues to be one of the few countries in the World in which broadband
Internet access is readily available to just about any would-be user anywhere in the country, with connectivity of over 99%.
Teleview was initially up and running as a public service at the same time as Singapore Telecom was formed in 1992 from the business arm of TAS whereas TAS remained as the statutory regulatory authority.
Subscribers connected to the Teleview, now-defunct, service by Singapore Telecommunications
(SingTel), via a dialup connection initially by 1200-2400 bit modems (V22 Biz) and then later via 9600-14400 kbit/s modems. Subscribers initially paid no time based usage fee for this service. However later charges, on top of telephone line charges were levied.
A later development from Teleview provided an interfaced connection to the Internet , subscribers were given access to the Internet via a text-only terminal; email was accessed by Pine, and webpages were viewed by Lynx
. Subsequently, Teleview was rendered obsolete, and SingNet started offering to the Internet via SLIP/PPP over modem.
, a subsidiary of SingTel. The formerly-private TechNet network
was purchased by Pacific Internet
. A third ISP was Cyberway; it was eventually purchased by StarHub
.
In 1997, commercial trials for Singapore Telecommunications
' (SingTel) ATM-based "SingTel Magix" service were undertaken in March, before being launched in June. Also in June, Singapore Cable Vision commenced trails for its cable modem
based services, before being commercially deployed in December 1999. Singtel's ADSL service was subsequently rolled out on a nation-wide scale in August 2000.
In 2006, M1 introduced its broadband services.
introduced wireless broadband services in October 2001.
In December 2006, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore
(IDA) introduced a programme named "Wireless@SG
". It is part of its Next Generation National Infocomm Infrastructure initiative. It offers everyone free wireless access in high human-traffic areas, including Central Business District, downtown shopping belts like Orchard Road and residential town centres. The access speed has been doubled to 1 Mbps since 1 September 2009 and the free service will continue until 31 March 2013.
In early September 2010, internet service providers in Singapore rolled out the Next Generation Nationwide Broadband Network (Next Gen NBN) service plans. The Next Gen NBN is Singapore’s nation-wide ultra-high speed fibre network. It offers pervasive, competitively priced broadband speeds of up to 1 Gbps at comparable prices to ADSL and cable connection. Deployed 75% nationwide as of August 2011, Next Gen NBN is on track to achieve its target of 95 per cent coverage by mid-2012.
Cable
OLD plans: 1 Mbps, 2 Mbps, 4 Mbps, 7.2 Mbps, 21 Mbps (All unlimited data)
NEW plans: 7.2 Mbps (comes with 5GB/12GB/50GB data), 21 Mbps (50GB data)
Current plans: 1.2 Mbit/s, 2 Mbit/s, 7.2 Mbit/s, 21 Mbit/s (All expect 1.2 Mbit/s have unlimited data usage; 1.2 Mbit/s have a limit of 30GB data)
Wireless@SG
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, there are 6,791,000 broadband Internet subscribers (as of June 2010). and household broadband penetration was at 82% the same year. There are four major Internet Service Provider
Internet service provider
An Internet service provider is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers...
s in Singapore, namely, SingNet
SingNet
SingNet is a subsidiary internet service provider branch of Singapore Telecommunications. It is one of four commercial internet system providers in Singapore .-Services:*Consumer Dial-up services...
, StarHub
StarHub
StarHub Limited is a full-fledged telecommunications company providing a full range of services over mobile, internet and fixed platforms in Singapore...
, Pacnet
Pacnet
Pacnet is a global telecommunications service provider formed from the operational merger of Asia Netcom and Pacific Internet on 8 January 2008...
and M1. Over the years, the Singapore Government have been promoting the usage of broadband Internet access, as part of its Intelligent Nation 2015 (iN2015) masterplan.
Singapore, as a small densely populated island nation and a pioneer, continues to be one of the few countries in the World in which broadband
Broadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
Internet access is readily available to just about any would-be user anywhere in the country, with connectivity of over 99%.
Beginnings
For the general public, before the Internet, Singapore was the first country to launch an interactive information service to the public which included photographic images. Teleview as it was known was jointly developed by TAS (Telecom Authority of Singapore) and GEC-Marconi of the UK. The service started trials during late 1987 using specifically designed terminals. This was expanded during 1989 and eventually as Personal Computers became more capable there was a software/ hardware addition available for the PC. Early Service Providers for editorial were Singapore Press Holdings, Housing Development Board and Singapore Stock Exchange, providing a range of services including General News, Business News, Housing lots and selection list, realtime stocks and shares prices.Teleview was initially up and running as a public service at the same time as Singapore Telecom was formed in 1992 from the business arm of TAS whereas TAS remained as the statutory regulatory authority.
Subscribers connected to the Teleview, now-defunct, service by Singapore Telecommunications
Singapore Telecommunications
Singapore Telecommunications Limited , commonly abbreviated as SingTel, is a Singaporean telecommunications company, with a combined mobile subscriber base of 416 million customers from its own operations and regional associates in 25 countries at end of June 2011 increased by 19 percent from a...
(SingTel), via a dialup connection initially by 1200-2400 bit modems (V22 Biz) and then later via 9600-14400 kbit/s modems. Subscribers initially paid no time based usage fee for this service. However later charges, on top of telephone line charges were levied.
A later development from Teleview provided an interfaced connection to the Internet , subscribers were given access to the Internet via a text-only terminal; email was accessed by Pine, and webpages were viewed by Lynx
Lynx (web browser)
Lynx is a text-based web browser for use on cursor-addressable character cell terminals and is very configurable.-Usage:Browsing in Lynx consists of highlighting the chosen link using cursor keys, or having all links on a page numbered and entering the chosen link's number. Current versions support...
. Subsequently, Teleview was rendered obsolete, and SingNet started offering to the Internet via SLIP/PPP over modem.
Dial-up access
Access to the Internet via Teleview-SingNet evolved to a full-fledged dial-up service known as SingNetSingNet
SingNet is a subsidiary internet service provider branch of Singapore Telecommunications. It is one of four commercial internet system providers in Singapore .-Services:*Consumer Dial-up services...
, a subsidiary of SingTel. The formerly-private TechNet network
TechNet (computer network)
TechNet was established in 1991 as a closed research and development computer network for academics at the National University of Singapore...
was purchased by Pacific Internet
Pacific Internet
Pacific Internet was headquartered in Singapore and was the largest telco-independent Internet Communications Service Provider in the Asia Pacific region with direct presence in Singapore, Hong Kong, Philippines, Australia, India, Thailand and Malaysia...
. A third ISP was Cyberway; it was eventually purchased by StarHub
StarHub
StarHub Limited is a full-fledged telecommunications company providing a full range of services over mobile, internet and fixed platforms in Singapore...
.
Broadband access
In a government-led initiative to connect the island in a high-speed broadband network using various mediums such as fibre, DSL and cable, the Singapore ONE project was formally announced in June 1996, and commercially launched in June 1998. By December 1998, Singapore ONE is available nationwide with the completion of the national fibre optics network.In 1997, commercial trials for Singapore Telecommunications
Singapore Telecommunications
Singapore Telecommunications Limited , commonly abbreviated as SingTel, is a Singaporean telecommunications company, with a combined mobile subscriber base of 416 million customers from its own operations and regional associates in 25 countries at end of June 2011 increased by 19 percent from a...
' (SingTel) ATM-based "SingTel Magix" service were undertaken in March, before being launched in June. Also in June, Singapore Cable Vision commenced trails for its cable modem
Cable modem
A cable modem is a type of network bridge and modem that provides bi-directional data communication via radio frequency channels on a HFC and RFoG infrastructure. Cable modems are primarily used to deliver broadband Internet access in the form of cable Internet, taking advantage of the high...
based services, before being commercially deployed in December 1999. Singtel's ADSL service was subsequently rolled out on a nation-wide scale in August 2000.
In 2006, M1 introduced its broadband services.
Current developments
In January 2001, the Broadband Media Association was formed to promote the broadband industry. By April the same year there were 6 broadband Internet providers, with the total number of broadband users exceeding 300,000. Pacific InternetPacific Internet
Pacific Internet was headquartered in Singapore and was the largest telco-independent Internet Communications Service Provider in the Asia Pacific region with direct presence in Singapore, Hong Kong, Philippines, Australia, India, Thailand and Malaysia...
introduced wireless broadband services in October 2001.
In December 2006, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore
Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore
The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore is a statutory board of the Singapore Government, under the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts .-History:...
(IDA) introduced a programme named "Wireless@SG
Wireless@SG
Wireless@SG is a wireless broadband programme developed by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore as part of its Next Generation National Infocomm Infrastructure initiative, being part of the nation's 10-year masterplan called Intelligent Nation 2015 .It will be run and developed in the...
". It is part of its Next Generation National Infocomm Infrastructure initiative. It offers everyone free wireless access in high human-traffic areas, including Central Business District, downtown shopping belts like Orchard Road and residential town centres. The access speed has been doubled to 1 Mbps since 1 September 2009 and the free service will continue until 31 March 2013.
In early September 2010, internet service providers in Singapore rolled out the Next Generation Nationwide Broadband Network (Next Gen NBN) service plans. The Next Gen NBN is Singapore’s nation-wide ultra-high speed fibre network. It offers pervasive, competitively priced broadband speeds of up to 1 Gbps at comparable prices to ADSL and cable connection. Deployed 75% nationwide as of August 2011, Next Gen NBN is on track to achieve its target of 95 per cent coverage by mid-2012.
ADSL providers
- SingNetSingNetSingNet is a subsidiary internet service provider branch of Singapore Telecommunications. It is one of four commercial internet system providers in Singapore .-Services:*Consumer Dial-up services...
(Plans: 6 Mbit/s, 10 Mbit/s, 15 Mbit/s, 25 Mbit/s (only available on mio Plan)) - StarHubStarHubStarHub Limited is a full-fledged telecommunications company providing a full range of services over mobile, internet and fixed platforms in Singapore...
(Plans: Various but only available to Business users in the CBD area) - PacnetPacnetPacnet is a global telecommunications service provider formed from the operational merger of Asia Netcom and Pacific Internet on 8 January 2008...
(Plans: 512 kbit/s, 1.5 Mbit/s (On-demand)) - M1 (Plans: 5 Mbit/s, 8 Mbit/s, 15 Mbit/s)
- Viewqwest (Plans: Various but only available to Business users in the CBD area)
CableCable modemA cable modem is a type of network bridge and modem that provides bi-directional data communication via radio frequency channels on a HFC and RFoG infrastructure. Cable modems are primarily used to deliver broadband Internet access in the form of cable Internet, taking advantage of the high...
broadband providers
- StarHubStarHubStarHub Limited is a full-fledged telecommunications company providing a full range of services over mobile, internet and fixed platforms in Singapore...
(Plans: 3 Mbit/s, 6 Mbit/s, 16 Mbit/s, 50 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s) - PacnetPacnetPacnet is a global telecommunications service provider formed from the operational merger of Asia Netcom and Pacific Internet on 8 January 2008...
(Plans: 8 Mbit/s, 12 Mbit/s, 30 Mbit/s) - M1 (Plans: 15 Mbit/s, 30 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s)
- NTT Communications (Plans: 10 Mbit/s, 20 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s)
Optical Fibre broadband providers
- OpenNetOpenNetOpenNet may refer to the following:*OpenNet Initiative, a joint project with a goal of monitoring and reporting internet filtering and surveillance practices by nations*OpenNet , a Russian news site about free and open source software...
(Passive Infrastructure Company ; NetCo ; Wholesale) - Nucleus Connect (Active Infrastructure Company ; OpCo ; Wholesale)
- Retail Service Providers
- M1 (Residential Plans: 25 Mbit/s, 50 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s, 150 Mbit/s, 200 Mbit/s, 1 Gbit/s) (Business Plans: 10 Mbit/s, 25 Mbit/s, 50 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s)
- SingTel (Residential Plans: 50 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s, 150 Mbit/s, 200 Mbit/s) (Business Plans: 30 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s)
- StarHubStarHubStarHub Limited is a full-fledged telecommunications company providing a full range of services over mobile, internet and fixed platforms in Singapore...
(Residential Plans: 50 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s, 150 Mbit/s, 200 Mbit/s, 1 Gbit/s) (Business Plans: 100 Mbit/s) - SuperInternet (Residential Plan: 100 Mbit/s) (Business Plan: 100 Mbit/s)
- LGA Telecom (Business Plan: 10 Mbit/s, 1 Gbit/s)
- PacnetPacnetPacnet is a global telecommunications service provider formed from the operational merger of Asia Netcom and Pacific Internet on 8 January 2008...
(Business Plan: 5 Mbit/s, 100 Mbit/s) - Viewqwest (Business Plan: 10 Mbit/s, 1 Gbit/s)
Wireless Broadband (HSDPA and Wimax) providers
- M1
OLD plans: 1 Mbps, 2 Mbps, 4 Mbps, 7.2 Mbps, 21 Mbps (All unlimited data)
NEW plans: 7.2 Mbps (comes with 5GB/12GB/50GB data), 21 Mbps (50GB data)
- Qmax (Plans: 256 kbit/s 512 kbit/s, 1 Mbit/s, 1.5 Mbit/s)
- StarHubStarHubStarHub Limited is a full-fledged telecommunications company providing a full range of services over mobile, internet and fixed platforms in Singapore...
Current plans: 1.2 Mbit/s, 2 Mbit/s, 7.2 Mbit/s, 21 Mbit/s (All expect 1.2 Mbit/s have unlimited data usage; 1.2 Mbit/s have a limit of 30GB data)
- PacnetPacnetPacnet is a global telecommunications service provider formed from the operational merger of Asia Netcom and Pacific Internet on 8 January 2008...
(Plans: 512 kbit/s) - SingTel (Plans: 1 Mbit/s, 2 Mbit/s, 7.2 Mbit/s, 14.4 Mbit/s)
Wireless@SGWireless@SGWireless@SG is a wireless broadband programme developed by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore as part of its Next Generation National Infocomm Infrastructure initiative, being part of the nation's 10-year masterplan called Intelligent Nation 2015 .It will be run and developed in the...
(Wi-FiWi-FiWi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
) operators (Free access; Up to 1 Mbit/s)
- iCELL
- M1
- SingTel