The hub will enable Liquid Telecom to route African traffic in the continent, rather than backhauling it via Europe, as operators have been forced to do so far.
By keeping African data in Africa, Liquid said it is able to reduce latency and increase connectivity speeds for its customers.
Satellite is typically deployed to provide connectivity to national parks, out of town offices, remote mining and exploration companies, and works more effectively in remote areas where it is not commercially viable or practical to lay fibre. Liquid has already rolled out a fibre network across Africa, spanning 17,000km from Uganda to Cape Town.
Liquid’s satellite investment is designed to provide businesses with the benefits of high-speed broadband connectivity and the resources to connect to the service wherever they are located. Customers will also be able to connect to the satellite network through what Liquid claims is the best VSAT equipment.
“Our fibre and satellite networks complement each other and enable us to meet the ever-increasing demand for connectivity from across Africa,” said Nic Rudnick, CEO at Liquid Telecom. Teraco is the most connected point in southern Africa and our investment in the earth station and the expansion of our satellite capabilities reflects our commitment to building Africa’s digital future.”
The company’s fibre and satellite networks are designed to provide a range of wholesale broadband services including MPLS and VPN systems to cellular, wireless and fixed-line providers across eastern, central and southern Africa.
