Fibre player Hero Telecoms (HeroTel) has reached 100 000 fixed broadband customers, securing a third-place market position, below Telkom’s Openserve and Vumatel.
South Africa’s fibre market is said to be one of the country’s highest-growth industries, with subscriptions increasing by 168% between 2015 and 2019.
Founded in 2014 with the goal of providing fibre and wireless broadband services, HeroTel has acquired around 39 owner-operated businesses and 45 000 customers over a four-year period.
“By hitting the magical 100K customer mark on our own network, we can officially say HeroTel is the third-biggest player in the South African fixed broadband market, deploying networks beyond the traditional fixed-line footprint,” says HeroTel CEOand co-founder Van Zyl Botha.
Botha notes this means HeroTel has successfully added 55 000 organic new customers to its network by offering “better pricing and direct service to clients”.
“While 45 000 customers came with the businesses that joined HeroTel, we’ve not only retained those clients on our network, but have subsequently attracted 55 000 more, to reach the 100 000 mark.”
According to the company, it aims to pass another 445 000 premises on its network, which is 10 000 stands for each of its 45 offices. This fibre expansion with its network of 2 500 towers will allow it to connect many more South Africans to the Internet, with two-thirds of its customers on fibre and one-third on fixed wireless.
The company also notes it has raised the R910 million in funding it requires to build the infrastructure in order to service these customers, and is looking to accelerate its deployment. “We currently have 105 towns and projects in build phase, with many more in planning,” says Botha.
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