VIEWPOINT
[Bangkok, Thailand] Recently, Phila Dube, Chief Commercial Officer of Openserve, Telkom SA, delivered a keynote speech titled “Enabling a Connected Experience” at the 8th Ultra-Broadband Forum (UBBF 2022) and introduced Openserve’s practices in ensuring network connectivity and improving user experience.
As a subsidiary of Telkom SA, Openserve is the largest telecom infrastructure provider in South Africa. It owns the largest fixed broadband network in the nation and is committed to providing regional connectivity services. According to Phila Dube, Openserve aims to build a digital ecosystem through innovative connectivity solutions, create a pervasive and cost-effective network across South Africa, and provide a premium customer experience at every level.
Phila Dube, Chief Commercial Officer of Openserve, Telkom SA
Although there are more than 40 fiber network providers in South Africa, only people with high disposable incomes can enjoy premium connectivity services, due to infrastructure construction limits and a shortage of resources. Against this backdrop, Openserve intends to build a full-coverage and open network to bridge the digital divide, and provide customized products and services for South African people. For the majority of cases, network connection is not the only reason for a poor user experience, therefore, in order to improve the overall user experience, Openserve has made significant efforts that include:
- Deploying fiber ready nodes and using fiber, satellite, microwave, and xDSL technologies to provide premium network services for home and enterprise users. At present, Openserve has deployed more than 170,000 km of optical fibers serving more than three million homes. In addition, Openserve has set up a network operation center (NOC), a major incident management center, and a 24/7 network surveillance center
- Transforming into a wholesale Internet service provider (ISP) to flexibly provide network services and ensure a premium network experience using innovative connectivity solutions. Besides, highly skilled technicians of Openserve provide professional field services. In the first quarter of 2022, the interaction net promoter score (iNPS) of Openserve has increased from 48.9 in 2019 to 66.1, ranking No. 1 among that of all operators in South Africa. Furthermore, Openserve is strengthening its cooperation with industry-leading equipment vendors such as Huawei and further deepening its interactions with customers to help them understand product or service details
- Developing the Openserve Connect app that enables users to place and track orders, check network status, find fault causes, and report faults. Moreover, Openserve calls on its partners to integrate their services into the app for users to access. Openserve Connect has been downloaded more than 400,000 times, helping Openserve win the “Customer Experience & Trust” Excellence Awards of TM Forum in 2022.
Phila Dube said that Openserve has achieved a fiber connectivity rate of 46% (No. 1 in South Africa) and served nearly one million homes with FTTH. In the future, Openserve will continue to help users across South Africa get connected, stay connected, and enjoy premium connectivity services.
