Tag: Mayotte

Article – French language

Bientôt des licences 4G pour la France d’outre-mer | 01Net.com (France)

My Comments

France is even working on the overseas territories to raise the broadband capacity there

France has established a highly-competitive mobile broadband market in the main territory, especially with Free.fr offering mobile telecommunications at very low prices in that area. But the government in Paris want to see its “DOM-TOM” outlying territories such as La Réunion, French Guyana, Martinique and co have proper Internet service.

Now they are working on opening up cellular-telephony spectrum in the “DOM-TOM” territories over the first half of this year to make sure these territories are on the same mobile broadband level. They have found that the spectrum in use in these territories isn’t enough to satisfy the real needs for people living there. There is proper coverage for 2G and 3G technology in those areas but not for 4G where they are needing to open up all of the cellular bands there.

As well. they need to do work to make sure there is affordable fixed and mobile Internet service in those territories. This could be achieved by ARCEP encouraging Free, Orange and co to set up shop and make sure there is competitive service on the same level as the mainland. The amount of bandwidth that passes through the territories could be increased whether as making them become “axis territories” for telecommunications backbone projects so they can serve themselves and any neighbouring countries with strong bandwidth.

Article – French language

Le haut débit s’étend à Mayotte – DegroupNews.com

My Comments

Mayotte is a “département outre-mer of France located in the Mozambique Channel on the east coast of Africa near Madagascar and has two main islands. It achieved this status in 2011 and is intending to become the outermost region of the European Union in 2014 although there is some of the Islamic culture still existing in that area.

Just lately, France Télécom – Orange have rebuilt the main exchange to integrate ADSL support in the telephone system. This is in conjunction with the connection of the country to the LION 2 submarine telecommunications cable that is integrating the eastern African islands to the LION connection that is servicing the east cost of Africa.

This would allow the islands in this DOM to benefit from an increased amount of bandwidth where there is a goal to make sure that 90% of the households and businesses in this DOM have access to the real broadband service. Initially the households located at the south of the DOM in Kani-Kéli, Chirongui, Poroani or Tsimkoura would receive the service.

Personally I would see this as a chance for areas neighbouring Africa to be in a position to show that continent that the Internet can enable people in this area to benefit as far as cost-effective communications is concerned.