South Africa might still be lagging behind many other developing countries when it comes to broadband Internet penetration, but with the ever increasing demand for affordable broadband, the country's telecommunications industry is booming. With alternative service providers deploying their own networks over the past few years, there are now a number of choices for South African businesses looking for connectivity options.
“South African companies are realising the need to migrate to alternative providers due to the array of benefits they offer, which include efficiency and cost saving through best-of-breed technology,” says Jaco Visagie, co-executive director at Skywire Technologies.
Skywire is such an alternative service provider. This innovative South African company supplies microwave-based wireless broadband and voice services to a wide array of businesses, from small businesses to JSE-listed multinational and international companies. With Skywire's solutions, the costly and disruptive problem of rampant cable theft need no longer be high on the agenda in solving the challenges companies face due to communications disruptions.
But, Visagie points out that the advantages of using alternative providers extend far beyond cutting-edge technology they offer. “Self-managed providers like Skywire hold many benefits for consumers. We are independent, agile, easy to deal with, and run by technology-savvy individuals who are passionate and know what they are doing. Since we're small enough to add the personal touch, customers can be assured of always getting just that, personal service,” he says. “And from a technological standpoint, we keep up with the latest equipment and trends, adopting them quickly in order to stay ahead of the competition.” One of Skywire's most recent hi-tech additions is the Porta OneEngine, which will provide one of the most comprehensive and accurate billing systems available, among other features.
Mondi Hattingh, co-executive director at Skywire, points out that all these aspects are crucial in any service industry, but especially in a communications provider. “Consumers often have misplaced trust and loyalty towards larger companies simply because of the familiarity of a name or logo. However, there is not necessarily safety in numbers - as anyone who has ever been placed on hold with a large provider's call centre will be able to attest. Often, you have to hang on for hours in the hopes of speaking to a real person who can assist you with a query or solve a problem for you, never mind waiting for technicians to come out and fix a problem. Many bigger companies are notorious for being frustratingly slow to respond to customer queries and for having massive installation and maintenance backlogs.”
Skywire, with its vast amount of Internet bandwidth, provides a turnkey solution, with best-of-breed technology, offering a wide range of solutions to suit any business need and budget. With capacity on multiple undersea cable systems on both the East and West coasts of Africa, the company is able to ensure maximum uptime and resilience.
“We focus on saving our clients time and money, allowing them to focus on improving their businesses by bringing them advanced telecommunication technology. We guarantee quality and high availability through the development of our own termination and wireless data infrastructure. This ensures better rates and services to the industry,” Hattingh concludes.
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