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omputers and gadgets along with the Internet have changed the way people live, especially those in major cities. Thus, broadband or fast Internet access is considered a vital resource to be available to all.

Indonesia, despite the huge uptake of social media by its residents, remains one of the nations with the slowest Internet speeds in the Southeast Asian region, let alone globally.

Research by Akamai, an Internet content delivery network, showed Indonesia to rank 118 globally in terms of average-internet speed.

According to its third quarter 2013 report, the average Internet speed in Indonesia was 1.5 Mbps, up by 26 percent from the same period a year earlier, but a drop of 14 percent compared to the previous quarter.

Neighboring ASEAN countries, are strides ahead: Singapore has a speed of 7.8 Mbps, Thailand 4.7 Mbps and Malaysia 3.2 Mbps. Vietnam and the Philippines have internet speed of 1 Mbps and 1.8 Mbps, respectively.

In addition to the Internet speed, the report also covers traffic, broadband adoption and cyber attacks based on a survey in 123 countries around the world, which were involved in the Akamai Intelligent Platform.

According to the report, the fastest Internet connection in the world was South Korea with an average of 22.1 Mbps in the third quarter 2013, while Japan came in second place with an average of 13.3 Mbps and Hong Kong third with 12.5 Mbps.

Total broadband subscribers in Indonesia hit 39.8 million users in 2013, a 28 percent increase from 31 million users a year earlier, as projected by the International Data Corporation (IDC). The leading provider of global IT research and advisory firm previously projected that Indonesia'€™s total broadband market would grow by 55 percent until 2016.

 Internet access is indeed becoming a vital service as it has changed the way the people, particularly in metropolitans, communicate. Applications and software allow people to connect on video and chat in real time over the Internet. Gadgets have cameras, television, messaging and phone capabilities in everyone'€™s pockets.

Internet users, however, still need to hook up to reliable high-speed access points, otherwise they will get frustrated. Proven broadband, high-speed access availability is important as it allows users to instantly connect to the Internet with no delays, signal issues or other troubles. They want to be able to download large files, such as music, photos, video and graphics, in seconds.

Since the availability and awareness of broadband technology are on the rise and the demand for high-speed Internet keeps on increasing, telecommunications operators and cellular providers in Indonesia are, thus, competing to improve their products and services.

The government has launched the Masterplan for Acceleration and Expansion of Indonesia Economic Development (MP3EI) 2011-2025, which aims to create a society that is independent, developed, just and prosperous by encouraging high economic growth. In line with this, a broadband network development plan has been set to reach a national broadband network able to cover 30 percent of households across the country this year, serving 20 million users.

Among the major points in the MP3EI is a digitalization project undertaken by the state-owned telecommunications provider

PT Telkom. The program, known as Indonesia Digital Network 2015, is a broadband development for end-to-end (user terminals, access, transport and service) to be achieved through the construction of Indonesia Digital Access (Access ID), Indonesia Digital Ring (ID Ring) and Indonesia Digital Convergence (Convergence ID).

To indulge mobile-gadget users in Indonesia, PT Internux has introduced Long Term Evolution (LTE), a wireless high-speed data, also described as 4G cellular, system. The company'€™s brand, named Bolt!, offers speeds of up to 75 Mbps.

 There are four other companies licensed to provide broadband wireless access (BWA) by the Communication and Information Technology Ministry including

PT First Media Tbk., PT Berca Hardaya Perkasa, PT Indosat Mega Media and PT Jasnita Telekomindo.

Indonesia has also granted other companies Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) licenses. However, since LTE is considered a more robust technology and used by much more operators worldwide, it seems WiMAX has gradually been abandoned as was seen with Sitra Wimax of the Lippo Group.

Cellular operators like Telkomsel, Indosat, XL Axiata, 3 and Smartfren are upgrading their networks and offering better services in broadband wireless access for higher data traffic and also voice and value-added messaging services.

The geographical condition of Indonesia offers a great challenge for communications networks. Operators will need to spend a lot to expand their networks to include the archipelago'€™s remote areas. Yet, they are expected to deploy their latest network everywhere.

Hamadoun Toure, secretary-general of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) once said: '€œInternet, and particularly broadband internet, has become a key tool for social and economic development, and needs to be prioritized, even in the world'€™s poorest nations.'€ (I. Christianto)