Weeks after independent fibre operator Metrofibre Networx completed the roll-out of high-speed fibre-optic access infrastructure to Rivonia in Johannesburg, the company has announced it has extended the network to Linbro Business Park, a giant office park complex east of Sandton.

Metrofibre Networx, which doesn’t sell bandwidth directly to end users and business customers but rather provides access to its fibre network to third-party service providers such as MTN Business, Vox Telecom, MWeb, xDSL, Arc Telecoms and Altech Technology Concepts, says it has begun providing access to its first customers in the Linbro Business Park.

CEO Malcolm Kirby says the company is working to bring new areas into its “open-access network” and wants to connect to as many service providers as possible via its 12 points of presence (POPs) around Gauteng. “The busiest POPs are currently Isando, Rosebank and Midrand, although all POPs have the same capacity and functionality.”

Kirby says Metrofibre will add another 10 POPs to its network in 2012.

Earlier this month, TechCentral reported that Metrofibre had rolled out high-speed fibre across Rivonia, offering business users speeds of up to 1Gbit/s. The area covered includes the main roads and some side road in Rivonia, from the N1 Western Bypass in the north to 3rd Avenue in the south.

The company already offers fibre infrastructure in parts of Irene in Pretoria and in Midrand, with plans to offer high-speed fibre access to more than 50 commercial zones in the next two years.

The company’s footprint now extends from Irene, in the north, through Centurion, Midrand and Isando, and into Sandton. – Staff reporter, TechCentral