High Hopes and Higher Hurdles

Recent history would show that perhaps the only thing slower than Lebanon’s Internet speed is the process the politicians have undertaken to bring about faster Internet speeds. But just as web pages do, eventually, load onto laptop screens in Beirut, it may be that Lebanon’s online evolution from the Stone Age to the modern day will not take another millennia. Former Minister of Telecommunications Charbel Nahas promised as much when he announced on January 28 of this year that third generation Internet services (3G) “will be available to the Lebanese in all areas within seven months” — alas, such was not to pass, though the country’s telecommunications sector has not been entirely devoid of new life. The light at the end of the tunnel 3G technology is a means of incorporating high speed Internet with mobile devices such as “smart phones,” but subscribers will also be able to attach a