Local service provider MTN has reported that its network remained stable and 100% operational in the days leading up to and during the opening match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup between South Africa and Mexico on Friday 12 June 2010.

 

Despite what the company calls “extreme demands placed on its network over the three days leading up to the opening match”, MTN did not experience any congestion whatsoever.

 

“Our network was very stable and able to accommodate the high demands placed on it by our customers during this time,” said Sameer Dave, Chief Technology Officer of MTN South Africa.

 

From 9 June to 12 June, there was a considerable increase in data usage driven by 3G/HSPA. Subscriber-generated SMS volumes reached a total of 25 million over the four day period, peaking at 6.46 million on 11 June at an average of 6.26 million SMS sent over the four days. In addition, subscriber-generated MMS volumes reached a total of 1.2 million over the four days, peaking at 344 253 on 11 June at an average of 307 278 MMS sent over the four days.

 

“It is encouraging to note that, having handled the increase in traffic over the first few days of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the MTN network is ready to continue processing the huge volumes in both voice and data traffic during the remainder of the event.

 

“We have always been confident that we were ready to deliver a world-class service as our responsibility that comes with being the first African global sponsor of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. This shows how our investment in upgrading the network is paying off.” concluded Dave.