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February 13, 2013

Dukcom and Alvarion Increase Rural Connectivity in Columbia

Antioquia and Atlantico, two of Columbia’s primary rural departments (Columbia’s version of states) located in the north east, will be benefiting from a collaboration involving Alvarion Ltd. and Dukcom LTDA. The companies are collaborating to deploy a carrier-grade Wi-Fi solution in the region. Alvarion is a global provider for wireless broadband Internet and Dukcom is Alvarion’s partner in Columbia. Together, their carrier-grade Wi-Fi will deliver data, voice, and video services across the two networks.

Carlos Duque, Dukcom’s general manager commented that, “We selected Alvarion’s Wi-Fi solution for these two rural networks due to the unmatched coverage, capacity and quality of service their base stations provide as well as the scalability of their solution. We are very pleased with our choice which enabled us to easily provide connectivity to tens of thousands of new users who previously had limited Internet connection.”

Dukcom partnered with a regional telecom provider in Atlantico to provide a wireless network in 19 cities. This resulted in 60 percent coverage of the residents in each city, lower cost, and a 50 percent increase in speed compared to what was previously available through cellular modems. The new coverage supports businesses, tourists, and the local population. Alvarion provides a scalable solution which will allow the ISP to expand to reach full network coverage.

In Antioquia, Dukcom followed a similar process, working with the regional telephone provider and ISP to connect the main plaza in 115 discrete small cities across the department. This will provide free Wi-Fi to residents and visitors. Along with Atlantico’s network, the Antioquia network serves tens of thousands of users.

Alvarion’s spokesperson stated that they were committed to establishing connectivity in rural communities as part of closing the digital divide and because people in said communities need to have access to resources that would otherwise be difficult to reach.

Alvarion’s carrier-grade Wi-Fi includes wireless broadband operating in both the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands, using spatially adaptive Beamforming technology and algorithms that limit interference.




Edited by Brooke Neuman


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