Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) must invest in more than one voice and Internet medium to ensure that their businesses can keep running when their primary connectivity solution experiences a failure.
That's according to Mohammad Patel, CEO of O-Tel. He said the country's telecoms infrastructure - especially the cellular networks - is groaning under the demand end-users are placing on it.
As a result, cellular subscribers in many parts of the country are now complaining about slow mobile Internet access, dropped voice calls, delayed SMSes and other service issues. ICASA recently called all three mobile operators in to explain the reasons for "a concerning number of customer complaints" about these problems.
The fixed-line infrastructure is more stable and less pressurised, but it is also plagued by issues such as cable theft. Complaints from SMEs about waits of days or weeks for a phone line to be repaired after an outage are increasingly common.
"In this context, SMEs need to be thinking about how they will keep their businesses running in the event of an outage," said Patel. "Just as they had to make contingency plans and buy generators to cope with rolling blackouts when load-shedding was a reality, they need to have a back-up plan for telecom failures."
Patel said most large organisations invest in redundant lines and other expensive infrastructure to ensure they can keep operating even when something goes wrong in the telecoms infrastructure. Smaller businesses, however, can easily protect their businesses simply by signing up for two or more telecoms services rather than counting only on one. "The subscription and equipment for a back-up telecom service is minimal, and will allow your business to keep running even when the primary Internet connection is down," said Patel. "The investment will pay for itself very quickly if your business depends heavily on e-mail and the phone."
Although some businesses might be concerned that taking on a second service provider means they need to hassle about managing another vendor and more equipment, they can partner with independent service providers that aggregate services from multiple networks.
Some service providers have come to market with innovative products and services that can help companies to put redundant connectivity in place for a very affordable price. One example of such a product is an all-in-one device from O-Tel that gives businesses DSL and 3G connectivity, WiFi and Ethernet switching, and basic PBX functions in a single box.
If the DSL line goes down, the device can be configured to automatically switch over to the 3G connection. Because it supports VOIP services, businesses will also be able to make and receive VOIP calls across the GSM network, even if the primary Telkom line is down.
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