Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) introduction into the country’s ICT industry will help to lower the high cost of internet and voice charges.
Gabriel Pimentel, ABS Managing Director for the South East Asia and Asia Pacific made the comments today during the official presentation of individual operator licenses by the National Information and Communication Technology.
“ABS is a global satellite operator; traditionally we have been providing space segment bandwidth, but we have gone one step further, by not only being a satellite provider but in fact started to develop services on the ground, enabling a cheaper satellite bandwidth we bring which will be passed to the consumers,” Pimentel said.
“We are providing much more competition to the existing (and) established (ISP) providers, and competition always resulted in benefit to the consumers, and in reality we have seen in the markets we have played, the more cost effective services results in more people using these facilities.”
Pimentel said providing ICT services to the rural areas are one of the company’s main objectives.
Meanwhile, NICTA chief executive officer Charles Punaha said, “for NICTA’s perspective, we are fortunate to have an international satellite operator coming into the country.
“It is our hope that it will provide for more competition in the market, and this is something we have been looking forward to for a number of years, and off course will result in the reduction of the current very high satellite bandwidth that has been offered in the market.
“It will result in the reduction on the price,” Punaha said.