BICS continues to invest in Africa with launch of new point-of-presence in Kenya

Operators and customers to benefit from outstanding voice and data services in the region

Brussels, Belgium, 10^th November 2016 – BICS, a global wholesale carrier for voice, mobile data and capacity services, has today announced the establishment of a new point-of-presence (PoP) in Nairobi, Kenya, thereby extending the company’s reach in the African region.

BICS recognises the uptick in demand and the potential for future growth of connectivity and telecoms infrastructure in Africa. In 2014, BICS deployed a PoP in Johannesburg, which complemented the company’s existing PoPs in Djibouti and Mauritius. The subsequent expansion into Kenya both underscores the company’s dedication to service provision in the region and also completes BICS’ comprehensive and mature infrastructure backbone on the continent.

Previously, voice calls placed in Africa have been rerouted via other international points-of-presence, impacting the quality of services as they are being connected from one African country to another. A call made from Kenya to Tanzania, for example, would normally be routed through London and back to Tanzania, travelling thousands of kilometres in the process.

Thanks to the new PoP in Kenya, voice and roaming data traffic now stays in the region. By keeping traffic in Africa local, customers will now benefit from an increase in the quality of services – both for voice calls and data roaming – no latency and increased Internet speeds. The PoP deployment will also minimise the cost for BICS’ operator customers by optimising connectivity within the region, thereby improving the overall customer experience.

BICS is the only communications provider offering the complete suite of regional traffic routing for International Voice, Voice over LTE (VoLTE) and data roaming services in Africa.  All BICS’ PoP deployments are fully redundant and utilise next-generation technology, allowing the company to evolve its infrastructure as services and technology in the region develop.

“There has never been a greater demand for bandwidth, as more customers across Africa are able to take advantage of 4G.  Data-intensive apps and services are being enjoyed by a growing number of mobile users, who expect the jump in technology to correlate with a jump in quality,” said Clémentine Fournier, Regional Vice President, Africa at BICS.

“With around 70% of traffic currently regional, the Kenya PoP deployment means we are now able to deliver on expectations, providing the local connectivity needed to satisfy customer demand for next-generation services. Our work in Africa has gone from strength to strength, and our latest move demonstrates a commitment to providing quality communications services in the region both now and in the future.”