Liquid Telecom & Eutelsat Partner Up To Increase Internet Connectivity In Africa
Africa’s demand for internet connectivity has been growing at a rate faster than the rate at which Internet Service Providers can setup the necessary infrastructure to support this growth. In response to this situation, Liquid Telecom has team up with the French-based Eutelsat Communication to increase IP connectivity to African clients who mainly include exploration companies, remote mining, out of town offices and national parks.
On July 16th, Liquid Telecom launched the Eutelsat’s EUTELSAT 7B satellite to join the EUTELSAT 7A at 70 East. The firm has transferred the existing traffic at 70 East to the new EUTELSAT 7B satellite. The firm its taking advantage of its already good performance in the African market, the company is planning to advance its infrastructure in Africa even further in the next 12 months. This new multi-transponder contract for the satellite capacity will be effective till the year 2019.
“The strong features of EUTELSAT 7B, combined with our new teleport facilities in South Africa, equip us to meet growing demand from businesses for satellite-based IP connections. Our fibre and satellite networks complement each other, enabling our company to provide high-speed, cost-effective broadband services to remote areas where it is neither commercially viable nor practical to lay fibre,” said Nic Rudnick, CEO of Liquid Telecom.
The new deal will see Liquid Telecom expand its satellite operations in Africa further, considering it recently build a satellite hub at the Teraco’s vendor-neutral earth station in South Africa. This will enable the firm to route the African traffic in Africa instead of backhauling it through Europe leading to a significant increase in Africa’s internet connection speed to its customers.
“As a longstanding partner of Liquid Telecom we are delighted to take our collaboration to a new level with this multi-year agreement that highlights the value of our enhanced resources at 70 East as they contribute to building a digital infrastructure across Africa,” said Rodney Benn, Eutelsat Regional Vice President of Africa.
