Johannesburg, 23 Feb 2009
Alvarion, the world's leading provider of WiMax and wireless broadband solutions, was chosen by Orange Botswana for a turnkey WiMax deployment, using Alvarion's WiMax Forum Certified 4Motion end-to-end solution.
The commercial network, built at the 2.5GHz frequency band, enables Orange Botswana to provide advanced data services to businesses and homes in Gaborone and Francistown, Botswana's two largest cities with a total population of 330 000.
The first network was launched in June 2008 in Gaborone, Botswana's capital and one of the fastest-growing cities in Africa. Following this successful deployment, Orange Botswana increased the coverage in Gaborone and launched a second network in Francistown, an important centre for industry and commerce, in November 2008. Future extensions of the networks are planned in other areas throughout the country.
Wilfried Yver, head of Internet services, Orange Botswana, says the company is confident Alvarion's proven global expertise in wireless broadband technologies and commitment to WiMax will them bring superior Internet service to end-users, now and in the future.
“Alvarion's innovative technology and complete offering enables us to answer the immediate need for high-quality, yet reasonably-priced Internet access in the urban areas of the country. Our subscribers are already enjoying the benefits of the technology and we are very interested in the new opportunities 802.16e WiMax could bring to this market.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Alvarion is also providing Orange Botswana with project management and implementation capabilities including network planning, network dimensioning, installation, technical support and professional services.
“We are delighted to be Orange Botswana's partner of choice for WiMax,” says Tzvika Friedman, president and CEO of Alvarion. “With over a decade of experience in deploying OFDM systems, Alvarion is the leader in driving the growth of the WiMax market around the world. This deployment reiterates our commitment to the region with tailored solutions and turnkey project implementation. Orange Botswana's adoption of our OPEN WiMax approach enables true innovation resulting in new and competitive broadband service offerings.”
Using Alvarion's 4Motion solution, Orange Botswana offers its Livebox service currently available to most of Gaborone's population and includes advanced Internet access at speeds of up to 1MB.
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