New fibre-to-the-home player with 1Gbps plans

A new fibre-to-the-home operator called 123 Internetworks (123NET) is getting ready to roll out services to homes and businesses in KwaZulu-Natal.

123Net CEO Kalin Bogatzevski said the first areas they plan to cover are Umhlanga and La Lucia.

“The aim is to provide ultra-fast Internet services to the residents, connecting them at 1Gbps to the 123NET fibre network,” said Bogatzevski.

He said they are building an open-access network, where other ISPs can offer services using the 123NET fibre network.

Bogatzevski added they plan to offer a basic 5Mbps broadband connection free of charge to homes and businesses.

“We are working closely with the eThekwini municipality and we have already started obtaining the needed wayleaves.”

“All the needed equipment has already arrived, including the servers, routers, and network components. Once the wayleaves are cleared, we will start laying our own fibre.”

He said their IP links are provided by tier-1 companies with which they peer with remotely, such as Cogent and Level3.

For South Africa local peering, 123NET has an agreement to connect with NAPAfrica at Teraco. “Any local peering links are welcome, but we accept that this will take some time to arrange.”

Bogatzevski said the fibre project is funded by foreign investors from Bulgaria, adding that “Bulgaria has one of the fastest and cheapest broadband Internet services in the world”.

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