Melita is to launch broadband speeds of up to 100 Megabits per second this summer, allowing subscribers to experience “fibre power” as the telecoms group enrols Malta in the club of countries where ultrafast speeds are commercially available.
Melita chief executive officer Andrei Torriani told The Times Business that the network upgrades completed to date had already enabled 45,000 households to enjoy 100 Mbps broadband.
He explained the technology, known as DOCSIS 3.0, was new to the island; Germany had started its own DOCSIS 3.0 rollout late last year but will only have three-quarters of the project completed by the end of 2012.
Practically all households in Malta and Gozo would be able to enjoy the new speeds from launch as Melita’s cable infrastructure was already deployed across the islands, Mr Torriani added. The new proposition also added value to Malta’s strategic location and its aspirations to develop into a business centre of excellence.
“Home users will be able to download music, movies and videos in just a few seconds or minutes while chatting on instant messaging platforms in real-time,” Mr Torriani explained.
“Business users will undoubtedly experience a giant leap when using bandwidth-hungry applications such as real-time online trading or gaming platforms, real-time communication platforms, real-time rendering, and large transfers of data.
“We believe having fibre power available in Malta will serve to add to the country’s attraction as a business destination while adding appetite for more bandwidth-hungry applications commonly used for entertainment in the home.”
The chief executive said customers aspired to have access to faster broadband speeds that could cater for the “applications of tomorrow used intensively in smart and connected communities”.
He pledged pricing for both stand-alone and bundled packages will be affordable. Customers are able to register their interest online to be among the first to enjoy the new speeds.
Mr Torriani listed growing customer demand for high definition video streaming, real-time video chats and video networking applications and large file sharing. He pointed out that added to daily online habits like social networking, blogging, online banking, shopping, and e-mail, a ‘connected’ household could easily use up to 500 GB a month and require a minimum download of around 25Mbps to accommodate its online usage. In 2005, the basic household requirement was just 3.75 Mbps.
Malta, he said, was well prepared, citing the island’s sixth place in the worldwide penetration leaders ranking in SAID Business School’s annual study on broadband leadership with CISCO.
“The investments that Melita undertook over the last 20 years have clearly helped to position Malta very high on the leadership scale,” Mr Torriani pointed out. “We would like to contribute towards pushing Malta further to join leaders like Sweden, South Korea and Hong Kong. Fibre power will contribute towards that direction.
“In Europe and in the US, growth in broadband access and usage is clearly driven by cable operators. Technology is already at the heart of many of our daily routines and as time passes, technology will continue to control our lives. No matter which platform we use – office or home computer, mobile phone, or iPad – broadband internet is the single key element required to deliver our infotainment, communication and control needs through a computer or tech-gadgets.”
After the summer launch, Melita will continue to invest in other services using high broadband speeds as part of their delivery platform. Fibre power will enable Melita to launch video-on-demand services later in the year. The offering will include an extensive library of films and top series to be watched at viewers’ convenience.
Melita celebrates 20 years in business this year, a milestone Mr Torriani describes as “great” for an operator in the competitive telecommu-nications industry.
To celebrate, Melita will offer 50,000 customers subscribed to the 5Mbps and 10Mbps service a week’s free upgrades to 20Mbps. The free upgrades began to roll out by region on Tuesday. The exercise is expected to take six weeks to complete. Customers can check on dates for free upgrades in their region on Melita’s portal.