WiMAX opportunity in Cambodia is compelling. The country has just recovered from the war it had in 70s as well as the civil war in the 80s. Most of the fixed line infrastructure is in shambles. There are only 25,000 fixed lines in Phnom Penh compared to a population of 1.5 million.
When Mediaring, Asia’s VoIP pioneer, obtained WiMAX license from Cambodia regulator in December 2005, the company installed pre-WiMAX equipment (as WiMAX was not standardized at the time). Along with the local partners, a trial got going in January 2006. The 20 companies that were selected for the trial all subscribed to the services when the trial turned into a commercial offering on May 4, 2006. These companies include banks and the government sector.
Since the launch, Mediaring has signed up over 700 WiMAX customers in Cambodia. The total ADSL users are estimated to be about 2000-2500 in the country. In other words, Mediaring has about 35% market share of Internet subscriber base in Cambodia. The company has recovered its investment in Cambodia in a matter of 12 months.
The service provider provides a free WiMAX modem within a 12 month contract. It sells unlimited 128Kbps at about US$350/month; 1Gb download free at 128Kbps at about US$70/month. The company also sells VoIP services. Mediaring is also a licensed VoIP provider in Cambodia. The company’s WiMAX equipment is able to blend in VoIP on top of the WiMAX signal. There is opportunity to serve mobile WiMAX prospects as well.