In Senegal, Sonatel (Orange) introduced commercial fixed 5G connectivity offers for residential and business customers starting this Wednesday, March 6. In a press release published on Tuesday, March 5, the mobile phone company indicated that it will soon add mobile Internet offers for very high speed.
With 5G, Sonatel promises its customers “ instant download and streaming speeds, as well as increased responsiveness for real-time applications, such as online gaming, virtual reality, telemedicine, e- education and many others .” The company also invites them to come and discover “ the infinite possibilities ” of technology in a dedicated laboratory located at the Orange Digital Center (ODC) in Dakar.
The launch of commercial 5G by Sonatel comes approximately seven months after the company acquired the first ultra-broadband operating license in Senegal from the Telecommunications and Postal Regulatory Authority (ARTP) for 34, 5 billion CFA francs ($57 million). The telecoms company had been preparing to deploy the technology since 2020. It confirmed its ability to do so in December 2021 through a second successful test. In July 2022, it launched its 5G laboratory.
In the 5G segment, Sonatel is ahead of its main competitors Expresso Sénégal and Saga Africa Holding Limited (Free). The latter acquired its operating license in December 2023 for 13.5 billion FCFA .
This advance should notably allow Sonatel to increase its revenues and strengthen its leading position in the Senegalese telecoms market. According to ARTP data, Orange had 12.5 million mobile subscribers in the third quarter of 2023 for a market share of 56.47%. Expresso and Free respectively controlled 16.8% and 23.89% of the national mobile telephone subscriber base. In the Internet segment, Orange held a market share of 66.52%.
Original article can be seen at: