South Africa’s Telkom Launches IP-Based Satellite Service
By Jeffrey Hill | July 31, 2012
[Satellite TODAY 07-31-12] South African service provider Telkom has unveiled a new IP-based communication solution that incorporates satellite technology, the company announced July 30.
SpaceStream Home will offer Internet access with a download rate of up to 512 kbps and either one or two Voice-over-IP telephony lines per single deployment, with a monthly bandwidth cap of 1 Gigabyte. The platform will be added to Telkom’s satellite product portfolio that offers voice and Internet services to small business and residential customers.
Telkom Managing Director of Products Steve Lewis said the company’s initial focus would be on customers who are currently serviced by manual exchanges, old copper wire line technologies and customers who fall within the Square Kilometer Array exclusion zones. The Square Kilometer Array zone requires large radio silent areas around antennas to prevent the use of terrestrial wireless systems and cellular phones.
“An area of focus for Telkom’s satellite strategy is to enable voice and data services in areas where normal wire line or wireless access networks are not cost-effective or where high-reliability cannot be ensured,” Lewis said in a statement. “SpaceStream Home is an entry level product designed to deliver voice and Internet services to areas with unreliable or no terrestrial infrastructure. It is an especially compelling offer for our customers in rural areas that have been repeatedly hit by cable theft.”