Internet Solutions, and Rain – previously known as Wireless Business Solutions, have teamed up to offer commercial LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) to local Internet service providers (ISPs).<\/p>\n
IS will act as Rain\u2019s \u2018open access\u2019 go-to-market partner for its fixed LTE-A product.<\/p>\n
\u201cAccess to LTE-A on the Rain network, with streamlined provisioning of service from Internet Solutions, is an attractive proposition for ISPs that have identified LTE-A as a driver of business sustainability, through an expanded product portfolio and infrastructure savings,\u201d said Murray Steyn, executive head: wholesale at Internet Solutions.<\/p>\n
“As Internet Solutions is already integrated into all existing telcos, with a sophisticated billing and management platform that allows ISPs to administer the packages they market to customers, adding LTE-A to their offering will demonstrate their responsiveness to new technologies and consumer demand.”<\/p>\n
First announced in September 2016, the Rain LTE-A network of currently 750 active base stations, and increasing daily, already extends across South Africa\u2019s major centres and metropolitan areas.<\/p>\n
The company said it is on target to reach 2,000 sites by the end of the year, and expects to increase its footprint to 5,000 base stations by 2018, and ultimately growing to 10,000 sites over time.<\/p>\n
It said that where there is high-density mobile coverage, LTE-A offers ISPs and their customers advantages over a wired network like ADSL or fibre, particularly for ISPs that wish to deliver services to customers quickly with minimal disruption during installation.<\/p>\n
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