INRED Partners with SES Networks to Enable 1,000 Free Wi-Fi Hotspots to Connect Colombia

The Colombian Ministry of Telecommunications (Mintic) has selected local services provider INRED to install, operate and maintain 1,000 Wi-Fi hotspots in rural areas around the country as part of the Sustainable Universal Access project. Enabled by SES Network’s Signature Enterprise Solutions INRED will leverage managed satellite services with flexibility on capacity and coverage, and a tailored network management interface, SES announced today.

This project responds to Colombia’s “the digital future belongs to everyone” governmental initiative, which aims to accelerate the closing of the digital divide in Colombia and seeks strong cooperation between the private and public sectors to connect 100 percent of Colombians.

INRED has become Colombia’s first certified partner for delivering SES Networks’ Signature Solutions and will leverage connectivity delivered by the SES-14 satellite, which comprises a mix of wide beams and high throughput (HTS) spot beams to cover the entire Latin America region, the Caribbean and the North Atlantic. As a certified partner, INRED will also gain access to dedicated bandwidth, flexibility in service design, and teleport operations to ensure high reliability and outstanding quality of service.

By partnering with SES Networks, INRED is boosting Internet access in Colombia’s most sparsely populated areas, while fulfilling universal service obligation (USO) commitments. The deployment of INRED’s Wi-Fi hotspots will benefit 1,000 municipalities in the Colombian departments with the lowest Internet network penetration. The improved service will bring new opportunities for local communities and businesses.

“By working together with SES Networks, we were able to quickly and cost-effectively expand our data and Internet services via satellite throughout the Colombian territory, reducing the digital divide that still separates cities from the countryside,” said Jhon Jairo Ureña CEO at INRED. “This project will allow end users in 20 Colombian departments to have high speed Internet access, even in those areas that have been historically underserved or tough-to-reach.”

“Colombia’s geographically diverse landscape makes it challenging to build up infrastructure to connect people who live in sparsely-populated regions,” said Omar Trujillo, Vice President of Sales for Fixed Data Americas at SES Networks. “We are extremely proud to partner with INRED to help the Colombian government bring Internet connectivity to more people in remote areas of the country.”