SITA SC adds Africa Online to list of managed local ISPs

The deal with Africa Online brings managed Internet access to nine African countries, including Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania and Zimbabwe - keeping SITA SC on track with its target of an ISP presence in 150 countries by 2006.

"Airlines are deploying low-cost Internet access to remote offices to drive down their costs," said Brijdeep Sahi, Vice President of Marketing, SITA SC. "Through SITA SC's Internet Solutions, customers can leverage our buying power and benefit from managed and secure end-to-end solutions. The partnership with Africa Online is another step forward in enhancing our ISP footprint."

"By partnering with Africa Online, SITA SC is not only adding to its portfolio of local ISPs, it is also opening a gateway for customers to managed Internet access in a region of the world which has traditionally been under-served by IT and telecommunications," said Lesley Davey, CEO of Africa Online.

"Consistent with our commitment of reducing the cost of communication for the Travel and Transportation Industry (TTI), we have availed a low cost alternative for customers who want to migrate their small offices and General Sales Agents (GSAs) to Internet Protocol (IP). The solution which is being provided in partnership with the Pan-African Internet Service Provider - Africa Online - is expected to not only reduce communication costs but expand the proliferation of the Internet Protocol in Africa," said Hani El-Assaad, Vice President, Business Management, Middle East & Africa, SITA SC.

Through its Internet Solutions, SITA SC offers TTI customers secure, reliable, and managed low-cost Internet access, reducing the need for airlines to deal with multiple local ISPs. Benefits include:

• A preferred single partner for internet access: by dealing with one partner instead of multiple ISPs, customers can significantly reduce complexity related to vendor sourcing, billing and technical support.

• Industry strength security: SITA SC offers multiple security options, tailored to fit varying local and global requirements - ensuring the secure integration of new low-cost Internet solutions with existing high-end IP Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).

• Low-cost: Through economies of scale, SITA SC can offer competitive local Internet access to its customers, in particular across geographies.