Fibre goes live in Parkhurst

Vumatel has announced that the first homes in Parkhurst have gone live on its fibre to the home network, offering speeds of up 1Gbps.

Vumatel has announced that the first homes in Parkhurst have gone live on its fibre to the home network (FTTH). In a major leap forward for South Africa, Parkhurst residents are now enjoying 1Gbps services in their homes. The company broke ground in the leafy Johannesburg suburb at the end of August, heralding a new era in access to high-speed internet connectivity in South Africa. Dubbed VUMA ‚Äòfibrehoods’, connected residents in Parkhurst are the first in a planned roll-out of 42 suburbs to enjoy this world class connectivity.

Super fast access

The VUMA network provides fibre to the home on an open access basis by supplying fibre connections of 4Mbps, 50Mbps, 100Mbps and 1Gbps. This means any licensed service provider can make use of the fibre to supply services to its customers. Consumers that take up the fibre are able to choose a service provider of choice, and can split their services, such as data, voice and internet protocol television (IPTV).

Launching FTTH coupled with real consumer choice through open access is an exciting and ground breaking development for South African internet connectivity and usage. Not only does the network provide consumers with high speed access, but furthermore provides the ability to have both choice and control of their access to the information super highway,” says Vumatel CEO Niel Schoeman.

Parkhurst is the first suburb to receive FTTH in Vuma’s network, with a more extensive planned roll-out across Johannesburg and Cape Town suburbs on the cards. “We are on schedule in Parkhurst and will connect all the homes by February of next year,” says Schoeman.

The decision to expand the network comes on the back of the launch of the Parkhurst project, which has generated massive interest from homeowners’ associations, communities and residents across South Africa.

How can suburbs become the next VUMA fibrehood?

Suburbs are effectively in a race against each other in their desire to have their respective areas become the next VUMA ‚Äòfibrehood’. Consumers are encouraged to pledge their support to take up the offer of FTTH services on VUMA’s website at www.vumatel.co.za by simply checking their address to ensure it falls within one of the planned areas to have a fibre network installed. This is followed by a short survey which the consumer is required to complete. Suburbs that reach a specific target first will be the next to enjoy the high speed offered by fibre. Adding a little competitive fun, visitors to the site will be able to see which suburb is currently leading the race to become the next VUMA ‚Äòfibrehood’.

Service providers are on board

Several service providers have offers available to consumers over VUMA’s open access network. These include triple play offerings, voice and security services, and the choice of capped or uncapped data at various speeds. MWEB, WebAfrica and Smart Village have joined Cool Ideas, Cybersmart and Vox Telecoms in providing services with further service providers to announce their participation over the coming weeks. In order to activate their connection, consumers who have installed a fibre line from VUMA to their home can simply go to the VUMA portal and select the type of service and provider they prefer with a simple click of a button.

This is extremely fast, extremely easy internet access. We’re excited to offer consumers not only extremely high-speed internet, but the choice to decide on how they access it. Parkhurst is the first of many in South Africa and we look forward to soon announcing the next suburb scheduled to receive fibre,” concludes Schoeman.

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