Liquid unfazed by Starlink entry into Zim market
Liquid Intelligent Technologies says it is not worried about the imminent entry of billionaire Elon Musk’s global internet service provider, Starlink, into the Zimbabwean market.
Starlink has since applied to the Postal Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) for an operating licence.
The entry of Starlink into the country’s digital space is expected to help significantly reduce the cost of internet and digital services in Zimbabwe in the era of digital technology and e-commerce, which now define how the global community interacts and conducts business efficiently and in real-time.
Starlink is a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite operator wholly owned by global conglomerate Space X, led by Musk who has a net worth over about US$200 billion.
Currently, Liquid is the largest internet access provider in the country, accounting for over 80 percent of the market share in terms of network capacity.
Responding to questions, Liquid Intelligent Technologies’ regional chief commercial officer Central Africa Ms Lorreta Songola said the company was not moved and remained confident of maintaining its market-leader position despite prospects of more competition in the sector.
“After all, competition is healthy,” she said adding this would be an opportunity for Zimbabweans to enjoy competitive services and pricing from all the players in the sector.
“We already operate alongside StarLink in our other regional markets like Zambia, and we are all operating well,” she added.
Liquid, which is a business unit of Cassava Technologies, is present in more than 25 countries across Africa. In terms of infrastructure, Liquid is the largest independent network provider in Africa and other emerging markets with an extensive fibre broadband network covering over 110 000 km in the region and over 26 000 km of this fibre network being Zimbabwe.
“We are not just a connectivity partner, as a business, we are also leveraging our network to provide cloud and cyber security solutions through strategic partnerships with leading global players.
“Our vision is of a digitally connected future that leaves no African behind and we continue to feed into making this a reality through providing customised digital solutions to public and private sector enterprises, SMEs and individuals (through our Liquid Home brand) across the continent,” she said.
Meanwhile, as part of efforts to enhance service provision, accessibility to Zimbabweans, and boost the digitalisation drive, the internet service provider is implementing up to 45 percent price reduction on the group’s popular US dollar-denominated internet bundle packages.
This applies to four of Liquid’s most popular plans, offering customers not only significant cost savings but also faster internet speeds.
Commenting on the new packages, Ms Songola said the group followed a systematic and collaborative process for developing new and innovative products and services.
“We are excited to offer the new packages which are part of our annual marketing strategy review, this enables us to stay relevant and cater for market needs. We envision a digitally connected future which leaves no Zimbabwean behind,” she said.
The packages include the Family Entertainment, the Modern Family, the Wibronix and Fibronix. These initiatives, the group indicated, were meant to enable affordability across sectors like education and small to medium enterprises (SMEs) as the group pushes for digitalisation.-herald
