(AOF) – As part of the French government’s initiatives to bridge the digital divide for more than 7,500 households located in urban areas and rural areas of the overseas department of French Guiana, Marlink has been awarded a public service delegation contract to provide the entire territory with high-speed internet access and 4G/5G services via satellite. SES and Marlink today announced the signing of a 15-year agreement to operate SES’ network of satellites in geostationary (GEO) and medium orbit (MEO) to provide broadband services.
Services that will change the lives of more than 30,000 Guyanese users.
Thanks to financial assistance from the European Union, the French government and the Territorial Collectivity of Guyana (CTG), Marlink and SES will offer high-performance internet connectivity with a speed of 30 Mb/s throughout the country. The two companies will build and manage the local terminal infrastructure that will carry nearly 3.5 Gb/s of satellite capacity for consumer fixed and mobile broadband services in Guyana.
This power will also allow schools and institutions in the region to take advantage of better speeds and speeds to get out of the digital divide for good. The services will be split roughly evenly between the SES-17 broadband satellite recently placed in orbit over the Americas and the next-generation O3b mPOWER system.
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End of the price drop
Thanks to the price war, French consumers have benefited from internet prices that are among the lowest in Europe. But gradually, subscription prices are increasing. According to the telecoms authority (Arcep), in 2021 they increased by 3.1% for mobile and 5.1% for fixed. If the current inflationary context can explain this rise in prices, it is not the only reason. All players are indeed seeking to restore their margins. They have already succeeded in outsourcing part of their capital expenditure related to the deployment of their fiber and mobile infrastructures (4G and 5G). Now they have to increase their income. This is an important issue in order to benefit from the development of their performance. Generating a satisfactory level of available cash (free cash flow) also allows them to benefit from attractive financing conditions, in a sector that requires substantial investments. Investments in the sector almost reached 15 billion euros in 2021, a historic level. The increase has reached almost 50% since 2017.