Telkom to swop copper internet customers to fibre
Telkom announced that it will be getting rid of all its old copper internet cables such as ADSL and DSL connections and moving customers over to its new fibre-based internet.
The transition will apply to all regions that are fibre-ready in South Africa and will be compulsory. This means customers can’t opt to simply keep their traditional copper ADSL plan if their area supports fibre but the installation of fibre equipment is free.
“This migration applies to all customers residing in fibre-ready regions around the country where the current DSL infrastructure overlaps with the FTTH (fibre-to-the-home) footprint,” Telkom said in a statement.
According to the company, they have launched the transition to combat cable theft, which results in significant downtime and infrastructure costs.
In terms of benefits for consumers, fibre offers better response times even with the same internet plan speeds.
Telkom notes that customers will be contacted directly by the Telkom to detail the fibre upgrade process and the process will include organising the free installation of the fibre CPE (client premises equipment) inside customers’ homes.
“We want all those affected to know that we are waiving the cost of installation. So, essentially, customers can benefit from an incredible upgrade without having to pay a cent in the process. The only cost involved will be the monthly cost of the new internet package that each user selects,” says Steven White, Executive: Product Development & Management at Telkom.
For customers that are not wanting to switch over to Fibre, Telkom has said that it will work with customers to move them to another alternative internet connection. These include options such as wireless LTE and Fixed Line Lookalike (FLLA).
Written by: Gabriella Steyn.
Guzzle Media
