-July 2008 - MWEB Africa has announced the launch of Voice of Internet Protocol (VoIP) service in Africa. According to the release from MWEB, "The launch represents the culmination of extensive market research, technical solution investigations, solution design, systems development and customer pilots".

Further content of the Release: "The service was officially launched on the 28th July at the MWEB Africa VSAT representative conference, which was held in Namibia. MWEB Africa’s VSAT service is currently offered in over 14 countries in Africa and is looking at expanding its distributor channel to more countries on the continent.


MWEB Africa’s VoIP service will allow MWEB Africa VSAT customers to make or receive voice calls to or from almost anywhere in the world at significantly reduced rates from as low as 10 US cents. Voice calls to other MWEB Africa VoIP customers using MWEB Africa’s VSAT access service will be free of charge making the solution attractive for companies with geographically dispersed offices.
VoIP has been popularised in recent years with many companies targeting the consumer segment. MWEB Africa’s VoIP service aims at addressing needs of both the consumer and business segments. There are a few factors that make the MWEB Africa VoIP service a unique voice solution on the African continent.

Another benefit is that a MWEB Africa VSAT client uses a single access service for both the Internet and voice. This will have a positive impact for business users as they will use the same access infrastructure for both voice and data, reducing lease costs with multiple providers, lower operational and maintenance costs by using a single service level agreement for their telecommunications services. “MWEB Africa’s VSAT solution bundled with its VoIP service is an ideal solution for companies in sub-Sahara Africa looking for a turnkey solution for both their data and voice requirements” said Mr. Kevin Viret, Business Manager MWEB VSAT.

MWEB Africa’s VoIP solution has been optimised to work efficiently over its VSAT (satellite) platform through a unique service feature whereby bandwidth is reserved specifically for the voice service. The net impact is that users experience quality voice speech throughout the conversation. “This feature enhances our VoIP service on our VSAT platform as we are able to provide a quality service to our customers, whilst still making the service affordable to our customers” said Mr. Harry Aucamp, CEO of MWEB Africa.

He also stated “sub-Sahara Africa represents a significant growth opportunity for MWEB Africa and our services. However, to maintain a leadership position we have to continually innovate and deliver products, services and solutions that are meaningful to our clients in the countries where we do business. MWEB Africa is in the process of developing more and exciting innovations for the continent.” Although the VoIP service is currently only available on its VSAT platform, the company plans to extend the service to its various WiMax infrastructures soon.


For many Internet clients in sub-Sahara Africa, satellite still represents the quickest and most reliable means to get access to the internet. Launching VoIP services over VSAT is seen as a key enabler for many home and business users. A key challenge in Africa is access to reliable and affordable communications. MWEB Africa’s VoIP solution on its VSAT platform is seen as a positive step toward bridging the digital divide and empowering citizens with communication anywhere on the continent.


For any information on MWEB Africa’s VoIP service in sub-Sahara Africa, outside of South Africa, contact Pierre De Brandt or Saras Chinsamy on 2721 596 8238"

 

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