Synglo Technologies, which is a 100% BEE company involved in the ICT Sector, headed by Papi Molotsane has acquired a 65% stake in UniNet.

Papi, who previously headed up Telkom, is now the Executive Chairperson of UniNet, and plans to revolutionize the telecoms sector in Africa using UniNet as the vehicle.

UniNet’s previous CEO and founder David Jarvis has driven much of the technology innovation in the company and is recognized as a regulatory reform activist and the continents pre-eminent expert on wireless broadband.

David continues to serve as executive director on the UniNet board. Under David’s leadership the company has developed an unmatched track record in Southern Africa as a leader in Open Access telecommunications networks over the past 10 years.

UniNet is well known internationally for its partnership with the Knysna Municipality, the first wireless broadband city on the African continent, that delivers on Governments mandate of universal access for all.

The World bank, Infodev, ITU and UN ICT Taskforce have recognized UniNet as a leader in the emerging markets as a “best practice case study”.

UniNet says that their network infrastructure facilitates the delivery of converged services and allows the provision of low cost access to broadband, voice and video services.

UniNet’s networks currently cover the greater Cape Town area, Knysna, George, Gauteng province and Durban City.

The company has embarked an aggressive acquisition strategy to rapidly scale its operation, increase its coverage and consolidate some of the existing wireless access market.

Some recent acquisitions have allowed the network expansion into Gauteng and Durban, and more are currently being finalized. UniNet is also pursuing strategic acquisition of some of the larger service providers in South Africa and Africa as well as other businesses that are synergistically linked to its vision statement.

UniNet’s edge in the market is partly due to its unique last-mile platform, which has been developed over the past 9 years and is modeled around selected components of the technology utilized in WiFi and Wimax and LTE standards.

UniNet says that their service offerings are uniquely modeled allowing for example, low-cost voice, data and multimedia services to be deployed in townships across South Africa.

“We will continue to use a combination of Satellite, terrestrial wireless and fibre deployments to provide the transport layer for its networks. UniNet’s open access, multi-play platform allows other licenced service providers to provide services to their customers,” Uninet says.

“UniNet’s philosophy is one of partnership with service providers. UniNet empowers service providers, including VANS in South Africa, with competitive wholesale telecommunications services which will create the landscape which will reduce costs to the consumer significantly.”

The company is confident that their roll-out will provide, amongst others, service to 80 sub-economic townships across South Africa, that house more than half the SA population.  “These communities have access to cellular communications but not at affordable rates,” says Uninet.

UniNet plans an alternative mobile communications service, based on its UniFi technology, which will allow it to introduce affordable R39 monthly packages that include unlimited local-calls (within a township environs), and low cost Telkom, Neotel and Cellular calls.

The subscription will also include limited free Internet access as is currently deployed in the Knysna project and across the Cape Town Metropol.

UniNet says it will soon be introducing its new range of handsets which are affordable dualmode “smartphone” devices, which will allow subscribers to use the GSM and UniNet UniFi networks, for voice and data and low-cost mobile IPTV services.

WiMax Spectrum

UniNet intends bidding for Wimax spectrum and is pre-qualified in terms of ICASA’s decision on allocation to operators that are more than 51% BEE.

UniNet says it is able to use Wimax spectrum, un-licenced spectrum, and other less popular licenced bands for the deployment of its services, as it uses its proprietary UniFi technology platform modeled largely on the open standards of Wimax and Wifi.

This allows the building of high capacity networks, not limited to the relatively small 20MHz allocations envisaged for the 2.6GHz WIMAX band.

“The combination of the UniNet track record and technology innovation together with the vision and vast experience of the new shareholders headed by Papi Molotsane, ensures that the transformed UniNet is set to disrupt the telecommunications sector in Africa, to the benefit of consumers across the continent,” Uninet concludes.

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