India's IInternet Service Provider (ISP) ACT Fibernet announced that it’s launching 1Gbps connections for users in the country. This marks it as the first local ISP to do so.
Headquartered in Bangalore and runs in 11 cities across India, it claims to be the third largest broadband provider in the country with a customer base of 1.2 million. ACT is rolling out its first gigabit internet service in Hyderabad, the capital city of the southern state of Telangana, The city is also apparently the center of IT businesses in the country.
ACT's offer that has the same speed as Google Fiber in some U.S. cities, is about 10x the speed of most other ISP rivals in India. On average, internet speed in India is about 2.5Mbps.
The subscription for that speed is Rs. 6,900 ($105, inclusive of taxes), along with a bandwidth cap of 1TB for uploads and 1TB for downloads.
With the move, ACT has become the first ISP to bring gigabit internet to India, beating Reliance.
ACT Fibernet claims to be the largest broadband provider in twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad with over 65 per cent market share. It said that the new service will not only provide internet connections at high speeds, but will also disrupt and lead technological growth in the country.
ACT has been working for more than a year to launch the gigabit service in Hyderabad, and has invested more than Rs 100 crore to roll out this technology in the city. The services were launched by Telangana IT minister K T Rama Rao.
"It is my vision to connect our residents through high speed internet and I am sure this product will further help fulfill my vision of making Telangana a tech and digitally advanced hub," said Rao, adding that key government establishments such as the secretariat and assembly, among others, will be upgraded to this high speed connectivity.
ACT Fibernet CEO Bala Malladi said, "The city of Hyderabad is apt for our maiden rollout (of the 1Gb services) as it has some of the best technology brands, educational institutions and a vibrant economy. We are confident this product will transform the way the internet is now being consumed at large and will also fast track the Telangana government's target to connect all its 23 million residents through the internet by 2018."
He further stated that only four countries in the world have offered Gbps services at a large scale.
