Korea Inks WiBRO Deal With Angolan

The Korea Herald reports that the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Angola's Institute of Communications (INACOM) to cooperate in rolling out wireless broadband services in Angola based on the Korean-developed WiBro platform.

Choi See-joong, chairman of the KCC, said that state-run incumbent Angola Telecom had already expressed interest in building WiBro networks during a working-level meeting. Choi has visited Angola, Egypt and South Africa to promote Korean technologies including WiBro and Digital Mobile Broadcast (DMB) television. The Korean-Angolan MoU also covers the development of DMB and IPTV, KCC officials said.

WiMAX-based wireless broadband services are currently offered by Angola Telecom via its business internet subsidiary Multitel, whilst MSTelcom, a unit of Angolan national oil company Sonangol, operates 802.16e (mobile-ready) WiMAX networks in the country, as does another local telco, Mundo Startel.

Angola Phone Users Hit 7.5m mark

At least 7.5 million citizens residing in Angola are mobile phone users and nearly 200.000 people use fixed telephone services.

This was said to ANGOP on Monday by the director of the National Communications Institute (INACOM), Domingos Pedro António.

According to the official, who was speaking in the light of the World Telecommunication Day, marked on Sunday, five million of these users are clients of the mobile phone company Unitel and 2.5 million users belong to the other firm, Movicel.

Regarding the fixed telephone service, over 100,000 customers are customers of the of state-owned company Angola Telecom, overcoming the other operators, namely Mundo Startel, MSTelecom, Nexus and Wezacom, the official said.

Except for Angola Telecom, Domingos Pedro António clarified that the other fixed telephone companies have only recently started operating in the national market.

The official considered as positive the telephone services provided in Angola.