Things to consider in Case No.

2:
-

computer shop for an internet cafe to service customers who wish to

rent computers either for surfing the internet, word processing,
printing of documents and other related computer tasks including
gaming facilities
120 square meters of space
mini-mall in a city where the surrounding areas of the mini-mall are
full of residential occupants. Prospects for putting up a cafe are
relatively good.
determine what are needed to put up the cafe besides having a
commercial space
Information coming from the different internet service provider (ISP)
telecommunication companies shows promising incentives if their
services are considered.
You group should be able to determine which among the available
providers should be tap and explain why you have chosen them
among the list of providers.
your group should justify the setting up of the internet cafe and
the service provider chosen to provide internet service. You have
to clearly show how profitable this business will be and when and
how they could get their return on their investment.
more on the technological side of it focusing on the TECHNOLOGY
you wish to deploy and use including the program to handle the
INTERNET CAFE operations. Secondary will be the COSTS and
PROFIT that can be derived in the process of setting up the caf
consider how you will be able to OPERATIONALIZE this concept or
idea that your group has in mind. You will be later asked to SETUP an
internet cafe where you will actually make it operational and
compute for ACTUAL expenses versus projected profit.
you group to look for a good site --- apply for government permits
---- pay necessary taxes --- look for supplier for your computer
units --- layout your cafe ---- subcontract the networking of the
computers --- and compute for the ROI that can be produced once it
becomes operational.

Internet Cafe, often called Cyber Cafe, is a place that offers customers hispeed internet access, other computer services and variety of PC games. It
deals with internet time that a customer buys and it can be sold per hour or
minute and sometimes longer. Internet Cafe is the most popular in the world of
business people, travelers and tourists, but it also finds good and frequent
customers in teenagers and adults who spend a lot of time playing computer
games. This place is simply a must for webmail, instant messaging and the
best way to keep in touch both in private and professional field. Internet Caf is
a place where food and drinks are also usually served.
Internet Cafe Equipment Necessary and Additional
Setting up of Internet (Cyber) Cafe and the cost of it depends on a number of
client computers and services you plan to offer to your customers. To start
Internet Cafe business, you will need: internet connection (ADSL, Cable etc.),
client computers, server computer that controls the clients and networking
hardware. In the most cases networking hardware is not very expensive,
however everything depends on a type of network. If you plan to have wired
network type, switch or router, and networking cables will be necessary. If you
plan wireless network you will need to have wireless access point or router and
wireless network cards for your client computers. Of course, if required, you
can make a combination of wired and wireless network. For Internet Cafes that
offers only Internet access office programs there is no need to buy very
expensive computers. However, if you attempt to offer computer gaming, it is
largely recommended to buy high-end graphic cards and processors.
Controlling Computers
Beside required hardware for successful Internet Cafe business, it is fully
recommended to use Internet Cafe management software. Internet Cafe
software is a server / client based application, used to manage customer
accounts, security setup, charge POS items and get the latest statistics, logs
and detailed reports. With Internet Cafe software, client computers are fully
protected and no one cannot use for free the services offered by your Cafe.
Client computers are protected with the log-in page that requires pre-paid
account to start work, or it demands to wait for a person to open the client
computer from server computer. When customers pre-paid account expires or

customer finishes the job, client computer is automatically protected again with
the login page and waits for the next customer.
How to start an Internet Cafe business
Internet Cafe is truly one of the most profitable business in the Philippines
today. Imagine, it converts every minute of your life into money.

THE PLACE
First things first, the place.

Ideal locations for an Internet Cafe are near the church, school, market
place or inside the community.

There should have a 'high foot volume'.

If you will be renting a place, make sure that it has no water leak on the
ceiling because computers are sensitive to this.

Also, it must be well ventilated if you will not be using air con.

It should have an access to broadband connections like DSL and Wireless

broadband

BROADBAND CONNECTION

For 5 computers or less, SMARTBRO can still be used. That's 384kbps to

512kbps of speed. For cafe with more than 5, you should consider 1mbps
or more.

Ask your neighbors or other subscribers in the area if the broadband

service is good or bad before applying.

TABLES AND CHAIRS

Ok, table varies. You really need to consider the dimension of your shop
when deciding the design of your tables. Smaller place means thinner
tables or compress. You can put your CPUs at the top by placing a long
flywood. Ask your carpenter about it.

Check your neighbor Internet Cafes. This will give you an idea what it
works and not. Do you need to put drawers for keyboards? Our
recommendation is no. Because it will only worn out easily.

You can put dividers or use your CPUs to serve as dividers.

Make sure it has at least 3 sockets in every outlet of every cubicle. 1 for
CPU, 1 for Monitor and 1 for speaker, or for standby.

As for the chairs, it will depend to the class of your shop. Usually,
monoblock chairs are being used.

THE COMPUTERS

This is the most difficult part of putting up an Internet Cafe. One mistake,
your investment is gone. Never trust your future to salesmen.

Only listen to those people who are dedicated in setting up an Internet

Cafe because they know what are the parts that works and those parts
that will only give you a bigger investment but produce same
results/profit. Remember: Bigger investment means longer to recover.

Go for Internet Cafe packages instead of building up and experimenting

on your own. These packages are tried and tested.

Consider icafebusiness.com

Why Internet Cafe is still a good business In the Philippines

(Yahoo-Nielsen Study on Urban Philippines Internet users)

28% of Filipinos in National Urban Philippines have accessed the Internet

in the past month. 5% access the Internet everyday.
Filipino internet users are likely to be below 29 years old, single and are
better educated.

Internet use is not restricted just to the big cities like Metro Manila. Other
cities are experiencing internet growth. For example, 35% of Filipinos in
Cagayan de Oro have accessed the internet in the past month.

Filipino Internet users are more likely to be opinion leaders and early
adopters compared to traditional media consumers. They are likely to be
individualistic, trend conscious, willing to pay for quality products and
are tech-enthusiasts.

Internet usage is particularly higher amongst the younger segments.

50% of those below 20 years old have accessed the internet in the past
month

Internet Cafes are an important internet access point. 71% have

accessed the internet from internet cafes in the past 3 months. 47% of
all internet time are spent in internet cafes. Internet cafes are also a
dominant access point for user from the lower socio-economic classes.

Email, Instant messaging and Search are the most common online
activities for Filipino internet users. Yahoo! is the dominant web-based
email, instant messaging and search service in the Philippines.

Social networking is a key online activity. 51% claimed to have visited a

social networking site in the past month. 1 in 3 Filipino internet users
have a blog.

Online Activities

Used email (63%)

Used instant messengers (63%)

Used search (58%)

Played games online (53%)

Visited a social networking site (51%)

Read blogs (42%)

Down-/uploaded digital photos on photo sharing sites (33%)

Worked on personal blog (32%)

Listened to internet radio (28%)

Down-/uploaded music files online (25%)

Reads news online on internal portals or other news sites (24%)

Internet SMS (23%)

Conducted online banking transactions (3%)

Purchased products online (3%)

The potential in setting up an Internet cafe business in the Philippines is huge.

Access is low at only 9%. This means that only 7.8 million of the 87 million
Filipinos have internet access. The other 91% or 79.2 million is a big market!
ADVICES IN SETTING UP INTERNET CAFE
Advice 1 Give discounts for selling more login tickets in your Internet
caf
Make your special pricing plans for your members. Give discounted prices to
your regular members and they will always come back to your Internet Cafe for
your services. Attract new members with discounted pre-paid login accounts.

Sell more pre-paid time for lower price (Example: sell 3 hours ticket with 10%
discount, 5 hour ticket with 25% discount etc.)
Advice 2 Protect and keep fresh client computers for your next user
Dont allow file saving anywhere on client computer hard disk. For this it is
advised to use Internet Cafe software to block Save command completely or
just allow Save in one hard drive partition and make all other partitions
invisible for the customer. After client computer is once used, Internet Cafe
software has the ability to close all previously opened programs or
automatically restarts the client computer. In this way it always keeps it fresh
for your next customer
Advice 3 Extra-charging for special and additional services
Some people come to Internet Cafes to use external hardware offered there,
since they are not well equipped at home or simply do not have these
electronic privileges (example: to print and scan documents, burn cd and dvd,
for faxing service etc.). If you have an Internet Cafe in a place attractive for
tourists or a holiday resort, it is fully recommended to allow transferring data
from digital camera to cd or flash drive and charge additionally for these
services.
Advice 4 Share PC game license on your computers to reduce
expenses
All companies, Internet Cafes, even home users are obliged by EULA (end user
license agreements) to use only the licensed games or programs on their
computers. This is not so big problem if you have small Internet Cafe with few
client computers. But if your case is `bigger` Internet, so you need to buy 50
licenses in the same game, this is will be a huge expense for your business.
Here comes License Key Management option that helps saving your money on
purchasing license. License Key management service checks the network if
there is a license key that is not used and transfer it to the client computer. In
this way you can offer the same game to all your client computers in Internet
Cafe only with few licensed copies.
Advice 5 Allow multi-player games to increase your membership
Multi-playing is really popular and fashionable these days. Multi-player games
can be played over the internet or in local networks. Teenagers and younger
children mostly have computers at home and have ability to play these games
over the net. But, it is much more interesting to play multi-player games with

the friends at the same location. Allow multi-player games and customers will
come to your cafe in groups.
Advice 6 Make your own city network of Internet Cafes
Internet Cafe software provides you the ability to network all Internet Cafes via
the Internet and share member account database. With this option, member
accounts, created in any networked Internet Caf, can be used in all other
Internet Cafes. Open few Internet Cafes in different city areas and sell pre-paid
tickets everywhere (in Internet cafe, newsagents`, hotel receptions etc.). In this
way your Internet Cafe business will become very popular and citizens will be
happy customers because of the possibility to use the same login ticket
whenever and especially wherever they want.
Advice 7 Sell various items to increase your profit
Internet access and computer gaming are the basic services that can be sold in
Internet cafes. Beside basic services add items common in coffee and small
computer shops. While surfing the web or playing games people would like to
drink a coffee or have a juice. Customers will also appreciate full service like
ordering drinks without leaving their seats. Have DVDs and flash drives in your
sale, so your customer can save downloaded files in your Internet cafe. Internet
Cafe software with its own integrated Point Of Sale system is here to make
your sale easy both for you and your customers.
Top 10 Internet Service Providers (ISP) in the Philippines
1. Smart Broadband Inc.
It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Smart Communications, Inc.. It offers an
wireless internet broadband service, Smart Broadband (SmartBro), with 1.73
million total subscribers at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012. While Smart
Communications, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Philippine Long Distance
Telephone Company (PLDT).
2. Globe Telecom
It provides mobile, fixed line and broadband internet services. Under fixed line
and broadband services, it offers Globe Tattoo internet service which has 1.7
million total subscribers in 2012.
3. Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT)
Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) is the undisputed largest
telecommunications company in the Philippines. It offers PLDT myDSL internet
service which has 829,000 total subscribers in 2012

4. Sun Cellular [Digitel Mobile Philippines, Inc. (DMPI)]

Established on September 2001, Digitel Mobile Philippines, Inc. (DMPI),
commercially known as Sun Cellular is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Digitel,
and is one of the Philippines' leading mobile telecommunications companies. It
offers Suncellular Broadband internet service which has 650,000 total
subscribers in 2012.
5. Bayan Telecommunications, Inc. (BayanTel)
Formerly known as International Communications Corporation and was
incorporated in April 18, 1961. It's the operating arm of Bayan
Telecommunications Holdings Corporation (BTHC). It offers Bayan DSL internet
service which has 132,000 total subscribers in 2012.
6. Meridian Telekoms Inc.
The pioneer of broadband wireless data services in the Philippines. Established
in 1996, Meridian Telekoms is primarily engaged in providing wireless
broadband and data services to small-and-medium-scale businesses
nationwide. Meridian was actually the first internet telecom firm in the
Philippines to focus primarily on highspeed data and internet services using the
broadband technology. In 2004, Smart Communications, Inc. acquired 100% of
this company.
7. Sky Cable
Established in 1990, Sky Cable provides cable tv service, voice/telephony and
broadband internet services called Sky Broadband. Overall, it has over 700,000
total subscribers in 2012 and that includes broadband internet subscribers. No
specific data has been published yet on Sky Cable's website regarding the total
number of broadband internet subscribers.
8. Eastern Telecom Philippines Inc.
It is the first and only local major telecommunication company to be ISOcertified, testifying to the quality systems and processes that the entire
organization employs to ensure service excellence and customer satisfaction. It
offers data, voice and internet services. No data has been published on their
website or on any other reliable sources regarding the total number of its
subscribers or customers.
9. Bell Telecommunication Philippines Inc.
It's a full-service telecommunications company that began its commercial
operations in January 2002. It offers phone/voice, data, internet, web

development/hosting, email hosting services and leased lines. No data has

been published on their website or on any other reliable sources regarding the
total number of its subscribers or customers.
10. Wi-tribe Telecoms Inc.
A subsidiary of Liberty Telecoms Holdings, Inc., Wi-tribe Telecoms offers
wireless broadband internet service. No data has been published on their
website or on any other reliable sources regarding the total number of its
subscribers or customers.
CONSIDERATIONS IN CHOOSING ISP
Our fast-paced world today makes almost everyone dependent on technology,
thus we have all grown dependent on the use of the internet. Unfortunately,
internet service is something that is not easy to define with regards to being
the best, the fastest, and the cheapest. Identifying which is the best internet
service provider (ISP) is also dependent on several factors that are both
subjective and objective. Because of this, there is no specific black and white
answer to everyones search for the best ISP.
You can, however, make smart decisions on subscribing for the right ISP that
suits your needs and internet requirements. Finding the right ISP depends on
your location. Other factors to consider also are the availability and
affordability of the service. We should also consider finding the ISP company
that offers good customer service.
Broadband connection can provide high-speed internet connection. These are
available through the installation of a modem, antenna or via television cable
connection. It helps to first know the differences among these types of internet
connections.
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) offers high-speed internet connection through the
use of a regular telephone line in partnership with a modem. Telephone lines
are made of copper wires. DSLs are affordable. One disadvantage though is
that the quality and speed of DSL service are dependent on distance. Thus, the
farther you are from the ISPs central office, the slower and less reliable your
connections will be. DSL, however, is an improvement of the old dial-up
connection.
Cable broadband is an internet service offered by cable television providers.
This operates via coaxial cable TV wires. Cable is much faster than DSL and
more available than Fiber Optic Service. One disadvantage of cable broadband

is that if you share bandwidth with other people in your neighborhood, this
might affect your internet speed.
Antenna is similar to cable broadband and also as reliable because it runs
through signals and not via telephone line. However, an antenna is dependent
on its mother antenna of a location. If a lot of people in your neighborhood are
getting signals from the same mother antenna, one might experience slow
internet connection on certain times of the day.
Fiber Optic Service (FiOS) is better than DSL or others. In fact, FiOS is the
fastest of all internet connection types. This is an application of fiber optic
technology or optical network using lights; therefore, we can say it has the
speed of light. Fiber optic lines are as thin as human hair and are pristine like
glass. The disadvantages of FiOS is that it is expensive and not available in all
locations. For example, the PLDT Fibr is available only in selected areas of
Makati, Ayala Alabang and other cities in Metro Manila.
Wi-Fi is for people who need wireless internet connection for gadgets, phones
or others. Wi-Fi is a technology that allows gadgets and electronic devices to
connect to the internet wirelessly using radio waves. Wi-Fi is also known as
WLAN or Wireless Local Area Network. Wi-Fi antennas are installed to make an
area Wi-Fi available. There is also the pocket Wi-Fi like the one offered by
Smart. With Pocket WiFi, one can create a Wi-Fi hotspot anywhere. The Pocket
WiFi can connect up to 5 gadgets. Internet speed is up to 7.2 Mbps. Other ISPs
offer the same service but of a slower internet speed. Disadvantage: Not all
electronic devices are Wi-Fi-ready.
Fiber optic cable. It operates at the speed of light.
ISPs have various plans or package rates. Plans generally have affordable
monthly rates and even promotions for discounted gadgets or other free items.
One should also be aware that some low-rate plans might offer a limited speed
rate for downloading and uploading. To avoid subscribing in the wrong ISP plan,
we should first study the features per plan and compare these specs with other
ISP packages. Doing your homework can make a big difference.
Know Your Purpose
Some people rant about their ISP as being the worst. Others just ask a vague
question on which is the best ISP in the country. But often, people just ask
which is the best ISP without clearly defining what they need an internet for in
the first place. If this is not defined, then people will start having unrealistic

expectations about ISPs in general, and then they will be discontented about
their ISP.
So the smart move in finding the right ISP for you is to identify your internet
requirements and purpose. When you visit a branch of an ISP company, tell
them what kind of application you need an internet for. They will, in turn, give
you advice on which package suits you best. Ask a second opinion or a third
opinion from another ISP company.
Will you use the internet for games, downloading, or uploading large files? Will
you need the internet connection for business? For these types of applications,
one would need a high-speed, reliable internet. One of the popular choices
among offices is the PLDT myDSL. As their famous line goes, PLDT myDSL is a
high-speed broadband internet service that runs on PLDTs extensive phone
network.
PLDT started as a monopoly in the Philippines as the only telephone company
in the country for decades. Being the pioneer in telecommunications
technology, they have also evolved through the demands of the times. They
have internet connection of up to 10 Mbps (internet speed) that can provide
HD-quality video streaming.
For simple home use of the internet such as home gaming, simple video
streaming, and video chat, PLDT offers the 1.5 Mbps internet package. For an
upgraded version of this plan, they have 3 Mbps and 5 Mbps. The 5 Mbps speed
can download larger files. This also allows multiple and simultaneous
downloads.
The internet connection they offer is wire-based with unlimited surfing hours.
Other than that, subscribers also receive a free Wi-Fi modem and installation as
part of their latest promo.
Location
Location is a major factor in choosing an ISP. Sometimes the performance of an
ISP depends on the location in the Philippines. For example, SmartBro ranks
from fair to good (or very good) in residential parts of Makati and Quezon City,
while Globes signal is poor in some parts of these locations. Globes signal is
very good so far in Pasig City and other areas in Metro Manila, while SmartBros
signal is poor in these areas. Some people are happy with Globe Tattoo wireless
internet in Taguig or Makati, while others are frustrated with it in Quezon City.
Therefore, because of location, internet speed and connection performance
varies. The best thing to do is to make a survey among your neighbors. Ask the

happy people in your neighborhood which ISP are they using at home or at
work. Also seek the advice of people who run an internet caf in your area.
Their business is dependent on their ISP, therefore if their business is running
well, they are probably subscribed at the best ISP in your area.
Availability and Services
Choose an ISP company that has a branch in the mall or an office near your
vicinity. This will be an advantage when you experience internet connection
problems. This is also useful during the times when you need to inquire about
other services or if you need to claim gifts from their various promos.
It also helps to find out where you can pay your monthly bill and what are the
acceptable modes of payment. For example, for some ISPs you can pay via
bank deposit or payment centres in the shopping malls. Paying through BPI
Express Online and via phone call are other options too.
It is also important to find out if there are penalties in cases when you are
unable to pay your monthly bill on time.
Application Process
Application process also varies per ISP company.
Smart and Globe Once you have the paper requirements, your request may
be approved on the same day of application. Expect technical service crew to
come to your house the next day for installations even on Sundays.
PLDT Their myDSL internet service is very good, but application process is
sometimes frustrating, depending on the location. This favours those who have
been a subscriber of PLDT landline phone for a number of years. Such
subscribers can simply request for an upgrade of their current PLDT phone
contract. If you are not a PLDT subscriber and would like to avail their internet
service, they will tell you to wait for one week for feedback on when they can
serve you. Expect a longer wait which will take months, especially for those
living in Makati or Quezon City. They cannot give you a definite date when your
internet connection request will be granted. It seems they give priority to
applicants for business purpose and less priority for residential use.
On a Perfectly Bad Day
Assuming you now have high-speed internet and you are very contented with
it. Then one day, your internet connection is out. You have no idea what is

wrong or how to fix the problem. You then decided to call your ISPs customer
care hotline.
Upon calling your ISPs hotline number, you soon realise that this company may
have the best internet technology but they have the worst people for the
troubleshooting team. Sometimes, you will encounter high-IQ people in the
customer service team but their social or communication skills are from hell.
Isnt this scenario frustrating? These and more are just some of the realistic
scenarios one might encounter with an ISPs customer care service. In other
cases, the people who will handle your concerns are good and competent, but
the system in handling customer concern is poor.
Smart Calling the customer service hotline is a tedious task. If you have no
internet connection due to area upgrade of the mother antenna, once you call
their hotline, it is hard to get through because other subscribers are also calling
the same number. However, once you are connected to a human customer
service representative, expect your concerns to be dealt with. Their technical
team are mostly very competent, polite, and smart. Asking for a payment
refund for the days without an internet connection is also easy.
Globe Customer service people on the phone are sometimes not technically
skilled because they give wrong troubleshooting diagnosis when you call in a
problem. However, this is not always the case. There are still some people on
their tech team or customer service who give quality service. According to
some subscribers of Globes internet service, they do not accept requests for
payment refund because they rarely have connection problems. For days when
the internet connection is out, the repair crew will fix the problems in less than
a day. Therefore, they say there is no need for any refunds.
PLDT Same with Smart, they have good customer service on the phone.
Although sometimes when you call their hotline, there are times when they
wont transfer you directly to the right local number. The phone operator will
ask you to make direct calls to other numbers. After making so many calls to
different hotline numbers, youll eventually realise that youre not
accomplishing anything.
In a Nutshell
There are no perfect internet service providers, but if we make our
expectations realistic and if we clearly define what our internet requirements
are, then the search for the right ISP will eventually lead you to the right path.
In summary, these are the things to consider in choosing the right ISP:

You first need to define your purpose for having an internet. This will determine
your internet speed requirements and other needs.
It helps to canvass from different ISP branches in your area. Read the specs of
each of the payment plans that they offer. Ask their opinion also about which
plan is the best for your internet needs.
Ask the people in your neighborhood about which ISP they are using at home or
at work. Learn from their feedback about their ISPs features. It is also good to
get feedback, suggestions or recommendations of a good ISP from people who
run internet cafs in your area.
Choose an internet service provider with a branch or office that is near your
vicinity. This will make installations, repairs, and monthly payments convenient
for you in the long run

Company Description
Value Solutions Computer Shop is a new company that will provide the latest and up to date computer hardware and fast internet
service for high quality gaming and surfing experience to it's clients. Value Solutions is scheduled to begin operations on November
15, 2014. Value Solutions will be a owned and operated by Engineers John Ryan Antonio, Lenard Melgar, Enrique Daguno,
Raymund Decena and Maria Cristina Perillo.
Value Solutions Computer Shop will target the gaming and computer aficionados within the ________________, Marikina.
The primary objectives of Value Solutions Computer Shop over the next year are to:
- Obtain commercial financing of Php _____________ to cover start up costs and initial operating expenses;
- Generate a net profit of Php _______________ in the first year of operations by developing a strong client base and keeping
overhead costs to a minimum;

Value Solutions Computer Shop is located at:

__________________________________
__________________________________
The space is rented and will accommodate the necessary equipment such as computers, fax machine, photo copier and other
engineering equipment.
Value Solutions Computer Shops mission statement is to:
Provide a quality service to its customers that will exceed their gaming and surfing expectations while maximizing the
value of their money.

Value Solutions Computer Shop aims meet the expected gaming and surfing
experience for the common public through the medium of the computer and
the internet. Value Solutions Computer Shop is the answer to an already
estalished demand. The public wants: (1) access to the methods of
entertainment, communication and volumes of information now available on
the Internet, and (2) access at a cost they can afford and in such a way that
they aren't socially, economically, or politically isolated.
The initial financing has already been secured in the form of: (1) Php
_____________ of personal savings from the owners John Ryan Antonio and
Lenard Melgar, (2) Php _________________ from three investors, Enrique Daguno,
Raymund Decena and Maria Cristina Perillo (4) and Php ____________in the form
of short-term loans.
The capital contributions from the owner and investors will allow Value
Solutions Computer Shop to successfully open and maintain operations through
year one. The large initial capital investment will allow Value Solutions to
provide its customers with a full featured Internet cafe. A unique, upscale, and
innovative environment is required to provide the customers with an
extraordinary experience. Successful operation in year one will provide Value
Solutions with a customer base that will allow it to be self sufficient in year two.