Board of Directors of the Communications and Information Technology Regulatory Authority (CITRA) have decided to revise downward the pricing structure of wired and wireless home internet services. The board also approved the introduction of new higher speeds of up to 400 Mbps, marking a quadrupling in speed from the current speed limit of 100 Mbps.
The Authority has chosen to amend the fee structure for all home internet subscriptions and introduce speeds that are at present not available to consumers. The upper limit for the annual subscription fee has been set at KD415 dinars for a speed of 400 Mbps. Providers of fixed home internet services, wired and wireless, are obligated by the decision not to surpass this stipulated maximum subscription fee. Moreover, imposing a fair usage policy on internet services is also explicitly prohibited.
The new pricing structure for the various speeds limits, including for speeds that were not previously available, reflects the government’s commitment to making digital services affordable to people. A look at the old and new price tariffs for existing and new speed spectrums reveals that internet services will become much more reasonably priced following the CITRA decisions.
The updated pricing list shows a significant reduction in consumption costs for various speeds, in particular the 62.3 percent price reduction for a speed of 40 Mbps and approximately 57 percent for the baseline speed of 20 Mbps. Notably, the annual subscription fee for the minimum speed of 20 Mbps has been slashed from KD139 to KD60. Conversely, the newly introduced maximum speed subscription, clocking in at 400 Mbps, carries a fee of KD415.
Regarding the previous ceiling speed of 100 Mbps for fixed home internet (wired and wireless), its subscription fee has been reduced from KD322 dinars to KD200 annually. Notably, this previous subscription fee for 100 Mbps is almost on par with the new subscription fee for the 300 Mbps speed, differing only by two dinars.
Moreover, a noteworthy change is the starting point for speed levels. The new resolution begins at 20 Mbps, in contrast to the older decision which began at 1 Mbps. This alteration can be attributed to the fact that lower speeds specified in the previous decision are no longer in demand, given the escalated consumer requirement for higher speeds to accommodate increased service utilization.
Furthermore, the new decision has revised the speed increments, elevating them by 20 Mbps from 20 Mbps to 400 Mbps. In contrast, the previous decision dictated incremental speed increments: 1 Mbps for speeds up to 8 Mbps, 2 Mbps from 10 Mbps to 24 Mbps, and 10 Mbps from 30 Mbps to 100 Mbps. The new decision departs from this gradual progression and introduces two speeds, 22/24 Mbps, between 20 Mbps and 30 Mbps. This shift is due to the heightened consumer demand for these specific speeds.
The newly set pricing framework is designed to incentivize consumers to upgrade their internet speeds significantly, all while paying a much lower subscription fee compared to their current speed. This reconfiguration entails a reduction of around 57 percent from the previous pricing structure.
It is noteworthy that opting for an 80 Mbps internet speed subscription costs only about 8 percent more than the 20 Mbps subscription under the old decision. The 80 Mbps subscription now stands at KD150, down from previous KD304, while simultaneously offering the advantage of tripling the speed for the same cost.
Insiders have communicated that the new CITRA Board of Directors’ decision aims to align with the evolving requirements of fixed home internet users, whether wired or wireless. These requirements have surged due to an uptick in businesses reliant on this service, responding to technological shifts in the needs of both individual and corporate customers. This expansion in usage has propelled a variety of applications, including those embraced by small and medium-sized business owners.