Frogfoot expands access, brings more value to South African fibre users in 2021

Frogfoot has continued to grow and improve its fibre network around South Africa, and has made significant changes to its packages to bring higher speed connectivity to enable a better remote working or learning environment for end users.

The company also piloted a new product, Frogfoot air, to provide an even more cost-effective fibre solution to people in selected suburbs.

We have seen the increased demand for quality internet connectivity to enable people’s increasingly digital lifestyles, and have responded through a variety of ways over the past year in order to better support South Africans.

Firstly, our Double Up promotion, first introduced in 2020, was made permanent in March this year, while the speed of the entry level package on our core product was increased to 30Mbps.

Then in November, the company started its pilot of Frogfoot air, a WiFi-only fibre solution through which Internet Services Providers (ISPs) can offer affordable connectivity to users living in select areas in the Eastern Cape, Western Cape, Southern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng North and Limpopo regions.

Among other things, we are reducing the cost for the end-user by installing a Frogfoot WiFi-enabled subscriber gateway, which means users don’t need to buy any other equipment.

New users connecting to the device are taken to an online portal where they can select their preferred ISP, with the option of 20/2Mbps and 10/1Mbps WI-fi-only connectivity available. Alternatively, they can contact participating ISPs directly or order via the Frogfoot website.

As the areas are covered by the company’s existing network, Frogfoot air users can migrate to its core FTTH products when they want to. If successful, Frogfoot is looking to expand the concept across its entire network countrywide.

Expanding network

Over the past few years, Frogfoot has strategically been building high-speed fibre networks in the country’s secondary cities and towns, and this year invested in acquiring significant dark fibre capacity along the national long distance (NLD) routes.

This is done to facilitate the growth that has been seen across our fibre networks.

It also makes it easier for Frogfoot to increase the capacity at the towns that are along the NLD routes.

Previously, the company would have been reliant on purchasing backhaul capacity from other providers, but this has now changed.

Having lit its own backhaul capacity, it now has enabled Frogfoot to increase capacity to smaller towns than ever before.

Other areas where our network has extended to include areas such as Mossel Bay and Oudtshoorn while a focus on KwaZulu-Natal has allowed us to cover select areas in a region stretching from Amanzimtoti to Ramsgate along the South Coast.

More recently, Frogfoot expanded its network with the Acquisition of the LinkAfrica Western Cape FTTH network – parts of which were built together by the two companies – which helps solidify its position as one of the leading Fibre Network Operators in the country.

Benefits for ISPs and business

Being an open-access provider, Frogfoot continues to add new ISPs to its network, giving end-users more choice and flexibility.

This has proven especially beneficial in smaller towns, where users are looking for a more personalised service, guidance and local support from their ISP.

Joining Frogfoot now allows these ISPs to transition from local or regional providers to be able to serve end users across the company’s entire network, providing them with an opportunity for growth. Currently, Frogfoot is servicing over 150 ISPs.

As part of the NLD rollout, Frogfoot has ensured that ISPs have access to interconnect with undersea fibre optic cable landing stations – Melkbosstrand and Yzerfontein in the Western Cape, and Mtunzini in KwaZulu-Natal.

The NLD routes will further enable Frogfoot to offer high-speed, high capacity connectivity between major cities in South Africa at a highly competitive price point, enabling organisations to consider strategies such as full duplication or disaster recovery with data being stored in multiple locations around the country.

Continued community focus

It’s not just corporates that stand to benefit from the growth in Frogfoot’s network; as part of an ongoing effort to support education in the country, schools that fall within the company’s network coverage area are eligible for a free 1Gbps FTTH fibre link.

The shift toward fully online or blended learning has made reliable, stable connectivity even more crucial, and partnering with schools enables Frogfoot to play its part in helping bridge the digital divide.

The company also introduced several initiatives aimed at supporting local communities in the areas where it is building fibre.

In the build-up to Mandela Day this year, Frogfoot partnered with 20 charities from around the country to coordinate the collection of soup for the poor, homeless and hungry in over a dozen cities and towns.

The company also worked with several organisations to run blanket drives over the winter, and even partnered with a company in Makanda to fill potholes in the town.

We are extremely fortunate to be in a sector where there is demand and growth despite the difficult environment, and we have taken several steps to support South Africans as we adjust to this new way of working and living.

We continue to grow our network and our staff complement, and believe we are making a real difference in South Africa by bringing cost-effective high speed internet connectivity to people who have never had access before.

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By Shane Chorley, Head of Sales and Marketing at Frogfoot Networks