Local ICT player Business Connexion (BCX) has teamed up with US Limelight Networks to provide international content from a local point of presence for the first time in SA.
“Previously, this was only available via international connections to remote servers, with familiar problems concerning reliability and quality of service,” say the companies in a joint statement.
Victor Antezana, executive of Strategic Growth Initiatives at BCX, says consumers are content-hungry and this deal will bring high-quality online media for local users.
BCX says the deal will see global content coming to Africa and African content being taken to the globe. It adds that the partnership is bringing technology that will enhance user experience at a reduced cost.
Behaviour shifts
“Driven by local and global availability of broadband connections, businesses are looking to provide customers with high-quality, rich media through any channel and on multiple devices,” say the companies.
They add that this can include video or audio on Web sites plus interactive advertising, whether viewed on desktops, laptops or suitably equipped mobile phones - as well as innovations such as mobile TV.
Limelight is a solutions provider that assists clients to find new ways of reaching their customers via the Internet and connected mobile devices.
BCX says Limelight's Content Distribution Solutions (CDS) played a major role in providing access worldwide during the 2010 World Cup, with traffic peaking at around two terabits per-second during high-profile matches.
“We estimate that our network connects to about 90% of the approximately two billion Internet-connected devices in the world,” says George Fraser, Limelight's international VP.
Limelight adds that this is important in terms of behaviour shifts where content and applications are expected anywhere, on any device; sharing, uploading, contributing, and purchasing describes current user nature; and personal information and media are stored in the cloud.
It explains that the aim is to provide attractive investment exposure to the growth of online advertising, hyper-expansion of the mobile universe and migration of applications into 'the cloud'.
Web 3.0 territory
Antezana says presenting high-quality content via the Internet to any connected device is a major trend for the future. “Local customers now have a single company that can provide these and other rich-content features from a local point of presence.”
He adds that today, accessing high-quality media on almost any device is something international businesses and their customers expect.
“Beyond that, however, it opens up almost unlimited potential for new features that can be billed through a variety of models. This makes it possible for our customers to take advantage of advertising, e-commerce, gaming, software distribution and streaming media capabilities.”
He notes the overall trend is for business and personal usage to converge in terms of media usage and access devices. “This is driven by the Web 2.0 uptake of social media and enhanced content delivery.”
Antezana adds that the partnership enters “Web 3.0 territory”, offering multiple opportunities for better service and increased revenue from providing them.”
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