After a series of successful mergers and acquisitions, Wananchi Group, the company which in 2000 brought about Internet revolution in Kenya through its affordable Internet connectivity, is now set for a major assault on the Kenyan ICT market in the next couple of months.

“Next month, Wananchi will roll out in the Kenyan market the first Triple Play service in Africa, comprising Internet, TV and telephony, all in the same cost-effective package and coming from one provider,” Euan Fannell, the Group chief executive officer told The EastAfrican last week.

The product roll out has been made possible by the group’s expansion of its cable services that saw it acquire Mitsumi TV, a cable TV network.

Through Africa Telecom Media and Technology Fund (ATMT), the company has also acquired a 10 per cent stake in the TEAMS cable, whose bandwidth capacity will enable it to set up a video streaming and conferencing network.

“Our goal in Kenya is to migrate from dial-up to wireless broadband using WiMax technology and VoIP. These should be in place by early next year,” added Mr Fannell.

Suhayl Esmailjee, the company’s chief operating officer, commended the government for initiating the TEAMS cable.

“When the cable finally becomes operational, operators will be able to save on major costs,” he observed, adding that the government was also doing a good job by providing a conducive regulatory environment.

Wananchi’s new brand, Triple Play, will no doubt revolutionise communication and entertainment in Kenya.

In preparation for the roll out of the Triple Play service and the re-launch of its Internet connectivity products, aimed both at the home and corporate market, the company is setting up WiMax base stations in Nairobi and Mombasa and plans to have rolled out at least 100 base stations by November.

Currently, more than 20 WiMax base stations have been rolled out. Through Mitsunet TV, the group is targeting 300,000 homes in Nairobi and 100,000 homes in Mombasa.

Subscribers will have access to 50 channels at only Ksh150 ($2.3) per channel per month.

“As a leading provider of ICT products, we are going to offer firs-class service to our clients,” Mr Fannell said, adding: “This is our industry and we want to play a major role. True broadband is currently not available in Kenya and this is what we want to provide.”

Mr Fannell, however, was reluctant to disclose the amount the company has invested in its new products, only saying that “it’s a sizeable contribution.” The company also plans to unveil a new logo.

Wananchi Group is also the lead sponsor of the first ever African Film, Broadcast and Convergence conference scheduled for Nairobi from September 23-25 (see separate story, page III).

Mr Fannell has also welcomed the new unified licensing structure adopted by the Communications Commission of Kenya recently, noting that Wananchi is one of the first companies to take advantage of the friendlier regulatory environment obtaining in Kenya.

Unified licensing, which simplifies the licensing policy in Kenya by categorising service providers into three, by market structures, enables these providers to consolidate and enrich their offerings without undergoing unnecessary cost and complexity of seeking licences for each service they seek to provide. The savings gained from the elimination of multiple licensing fees and diversification of services will lead to cost reduction to the end user.

According to Mr Fannell, unified licensing is going to work in the best interests of a company like the Wananchi Group. He celebrated this move for its benefit saying, “The consumer will be the ultimate beneficiary of this policy initiative.”

The Wananchi Group, one of Kenya’s oldest and most innovative service providers, has been busy consolidating and expanding its reach in the market.

Between 2003 and 2008, there was a major mergers and acquisitions effort, where Wananchi absorbed various companies such as ISP Kenya, an internet service provider, Mitsuminet, a cable television company, and Simbanet, a corporate provider of Internet services.

While the market has been rapidly shifting in Kenya, with the entry of new players and new products, Wananchi has been deepening its pockets and reaching into its treasure trove of products to ensure that it will remain the leading communications and entertainment solutions company in the country.

Principal to these efforts has been the establishment of the Ksh6.5 billion ($100 million) Africa Telecom Media and Technology Fund (ATMT), which is managed by East African Capital Partners (EACP).

The Fund, whose focus is in the technology, media and telecoms sector, is planning to invest in seven African countries: Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia and Malawi, with Kenya being the country of focus.

Richard Bell, one of Kenya’s technology pioneers, heads EACP. The ATMT raised $23 million from Overseas Private Investment Corporation in June 2008, and these funds will be deployed in its various activities.

Wananchi Group is one of the companies riding on the back of the liberalisation of the telecommunications sector that has been going on over the years.

Kenya started working on its ICT policy in 1991 but the first policy statement specific to telecommunications and postal sector liberalisation only came in 1997, culminating in the Kenya Communications Act of 1998.

It was the creation of this Act that in 1999 led to the split of the monolithic Kenya Posts and Telecommunications Corporation into three entities — telephone service provider Telkom Kenya, postal services provider Postal Corporation of Kenya and a regulatory body, the Communications Commission of Kenya.