Channel Islands, Jersey and Cartagena, Colombia
:
O3b Networks today announced a milestone multi-year, multi-million
dollar agreement with Skynet Colombia to provide high-speed
satellite-delivered internet connectivity to the Colombian Amazonas
region.
As a forward-looking internet service provider, Skynet is the first
provider in Colombia to utilize O3b¡¯s new Trunking product, O3b Trunk
which delivers very high bandwidth at a fraction of the cost of
conventional satellites.
Skynet will bring the much sought after broadband service to a region of
Colombia that lacks fiber and microwave infrastructure. The Colombian
Amazon has around 70,000 inhabitants, concentrated in 11 municipalities
and has poverty rates approaching 40%. This connectivity will give the
region a window to the world, developing the regional economy and
bringing much desired broadband services to the local population.
¡°We are delighted to have SkyNet as our first customer in Colombia.
SkyNet is an innovative company which is always looking for the best
solutions in the market. O3b¡¯s platform will allow SkyNet to offer its
customers much higher throughputs while the low latency of the service
provides a true broadband customer experience, enabling time sensitive
applications to run seamlessly,¡±
said Omar Trujillo, Regional VP
Latin America, O3b Networks Ltd. ¡°The Amazonas region of
Colombia has much to offer the world and can benefit tremendously from
reliable good quality communications.¡±
"This is an unprecedented technology development in Colombia as for
the first time the people of the Colombian Amazon will have the
opportunity to experience the same benefits as people in the larger
cities of the country can through high-speed internet access and
fiber-like latency. We are delighted to partner with O3b who can offer
this unique service to this part of the country desperately in need of
high-speed connectivity," said Ren¨¦ Otero, CEOof Skynet.
He added, ¡°We look forward to the service coming online next
year. The special features of the service offered by SkyNet and 03b are
without precedent in the region and are a perfect match to the efforts
already underway to close the digital divide and bring low cost
high-speed internet to all of Colombia by 2014 - especially in the most
remote locations of the country where there is a lack of terrestrial
networks."
About O3b Networks Ltd.
O3b Networks is a global satellite service provider building a
next-generation satellite network for telecommunications operators,
Internet service providers, enterprise and Government customers in
emerging markets. The O3b system will combine the global reach of
satellite with the speed of a fiber©\optic network providing billions of
consumers and businesses in nearly 180 countries with low©\cost,
high©\speed, low latency Internet and mobile connectivity. O3b Networks¡¯
investors are SES, Google, Liberty Global, HSBC Principal Investments,
Northbridge Venture Partners, Allen & Company, Development Bank of
Southern Africa, Sofina, Satya Capital and Luxempart. O3b Networks is
headquartered in St. John, Jersey, Channel Islands.
About Skynet
SkyNet is a telecommunications service provider specializing in
satellite services. It integrates the most advanced and efficient
technologies available from its own teleports using C band and Ku band
satellite bandwidth, and soon Ka band. Skynet offers high quality
Internet access and Voice and Data services in remote regions of Latin
America, including maritime services, where fiber infrastructure is poor
or non-existent. With over 20 years of experience in the field, Skynet
achieved double-digit sustained growth in the last five years,
establishing itself as a leading provider of satellite
telecommunications in the region. Although its main business focus is
the corporate and government sector, medium-term plans include expanding
offerings to small and medium businesses (SOHO) and to the direct to
home video market (DTH) with integrated IP services. Skynet plans to not
only gain market share but expand the demand by offering high quality
services at competitive prices. Skynet is a privately owned corporation
with headquarters located in the World Trade Center in Bogota, Colombia.
This press release is for informational purposes only and is not an
offer of securities for sale in the United States. Securities may not be
offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption
from registration. Any public offering of securities to be made in the
United States will be made by means of a prospectus that may be obtained
from the issuer and that will contain detailed information about the
issuer and management, as well as financial statements. The company does
not intend to register any part of the present offering in the United
States.
