Telkom’s wholesale division, Openserve, has announced it will cut the price of IP Connect (IPC), the platform that provides Internet service providers with access to its copper-based broadband ADSL network. The price cut should lead to lower retail prices.
Openserve is also taking a knife to the price of “dedicated access” services provided by its Saix division. The price cuts will take effect on 1 June.
“The new pricing structure for Saix dedicated access on average shows reductions of between 31% and 60%, depending on the specific product procured,” Openserve said in a statement.
“The entry-level pricing for IPC will be reduced by up to 57% to encourage further competition in the broadband market.”
The company said it expects the price cuts to “stimulate greater innovation and creativity among Internet service providers to the benefit of consumers”.
Openserve was spun out of Telkom last year as a separate division answerable not only to its parent company but to other industry players on a fair and transparent basis.
News of the price cuts comes less than a week after TechCentral first reported that Openserve would peer at the independent Internet exchange point NAPAfrica, owned and operated by data centre provider Teraco.
“Our peering at NAPAfrica is a clear indication that we will do what is necessary to reduce bandwidth costs while improving overall network performance,” said Openserve chief sales and marketing officer Prenesh Padayachee in a statement.
“Through the peering at NAPAfrica, Openserve has joined its industry peers at the facility where they operate from, thereby negating the need for expensive dedicated links to connect to each peer individually. This enables Openserve to enhance its cost efficiency and at the same time advance the growth of Africa’s biggest neutral Internet exchange. It further helps reduce latency on the internet connectivity of consumers by bringing content closer to them and substantially improving their online experience,” said Padayachee.
The looming wholesale price cuts and the decision to peer at NAPAfrica signal “a break from the past by formalising the autonomy that is necessary to serve all our clients on an equitable and transparent basis”, said Padayachee. — © 2016 NewsCentral Media
