How the city of Tefé has experienced a digital revolution

How the city of Tefé has experienced a digital revolution
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This blog post was published before O3b Networks transitioned to SES Networks.

Tefé is a city in the interior of the Amazon, located 500 km from the regional capital of Manaus, with more than 60,000 inhabitants who, even in the 21st century, have long suffered from digital isolation. Residents of the city have never experienced reliable, high-speed connectivity, let alone broadband that could rival the quality found in our major cities like Rio or São Paulo.

When we first launched services in Tefé the quality of service that we had to offer was very unreliable, but it was the best we had at the time. Internet service providers (ISPs) and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) were steadily losing customers due to the poor quality of service. Now, with O3b technology, we have been able to deploy high-performance connectivity to MNOs, local ISPs and government so residents can experience the high quality and fast connectivity that they never knew was feasible.

The local response has been incredible to say the least and makes me feel very proud. Within a month of deploying O3b’s “Fiber in the Sky” solution, one local ISP managed to regain the trust of about 70 percent of the customers that they had lost – and this was in just 30 days of service. This same ISP, Speed Network is expecting to double his company’s customer base after 45 days of service.

Through our partnership with O3b, we have been able to provide the residents of Tefé a reality that they couldn’t imagine before.  Today, business owners and universities are experiencing a significant difference in their productivity due to higher quality and faster connectivity. They also have access to a virtually limitless library of resources such as high-resolution educational videos and real-time information from around the world.

With O3b, one local ISP experienced a 400% growth in daily consumption from its customers within 30 days. This one is just one example of many of how connectivity through O3b’s communication network has transformed the lives of the city’s residents.