Dream of Latin American Internet
Genaro García, CEO of Internexa, explained why carrying traffic locally
improves user's service quality and saves bandwidth. The Colombian
company integrated networks in South America which will connect with
Central America next year.
I
nternexa is a subsidiary of the Colombian energy company, ISA, which belongs
51% to the national government of that country and the rest to pension funds,
private investors and to Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM, a 10%). It manages
about 28,000 kilometers of fiber optic networks among Colombia, Brazil, Argentina,
Chile, Peru and Ecuador (where it is a partner in equal parts with the State in
Transnexa). Moreover, through a bilateral agreement with CANTV from, it operate
there. In Argentina, it entered in early 2012, serving large and small customers and
among its activities that of bringing together the NAP of Santa Fe with Buenos
Aires stands out.
Convergencia: What is the key to your business model?
Genaro García (GG): We provide scarce infrastructure, ie, we take advantage of
power lines laying and we also deploy fiber optic on other routings. So our focus is
on operators for which it is impossible to deploy a network from the start. But also
large companies, which often despite having their infrastructure need our services
in areas they want to reach but where due to financial reasons it is not convenient
for them to lay a network.
Convergencia: Which is the differential you offer your clients?
GG: Among IP services we take care of local traffic, so that it does not necessarily
go through the United States. We have access to customer networks in other
countries and to major international content networks through deals. Therefore we
can offer higher quality to entertainment providers and to retail sites, among others.
Another difference is the proximity to our customers as a carrier of carriers.
Therefore we can grow in customers, although we do not have hundreds or
thousands as it is the case of operators, but most importantly we can improve the
services provided, especially the IP capacity.
Convergencia: What advantages does carrying traffic locally offer?
GG: Previously, each country had to pay for access to the US for Internet sharing.
With regional networks, infrastructure is more efficiently used and content has
fewer leaps. We have recorded reductions of up to 50 times in the response times,
of 20 milliseconds to 40. This allows the operator to serve more customers at the
same time because the bandwidth that each of them uses, is reduced. To attract
customers, we offer them to test them by opening their and our networks for them
to see everything we can access. Generally it saturates them the link, because it is
as if a repressed traffic were released, which previously made the long routing.
Convergencia: What does Internexa CDN network consist of in
Latinoamérica?
GG: At first we installed servers in Colombia and Brazil, ie at both ends of our
network, but it was inefficient because the type of consumption changes
substantially even among localities and from region to region. So we installed
secondary servers.
Convergencia: Did you not know this was likey to happen?
GG: No, it was impossible to know because no one knew what consumption was
like in Latin America. Everything went to Florida (USA).
Convergencia: If the local traffic benefits the end user, who achieves better
quality and also content provider whose products reach the customer better.
Why that idea does not progress faster? Why the ISP, with a business model
based on selling a fixed capacity, slows it?
GG: While it is true that the ISP sells fixed capacity and that it is not necessarily
convenient for it that quality be increased, it is however convenient to be able to
serve more customers with the same bandwidth. I believe that this model does not
advance more quickly in part because it requires many individual negotiations.
With us it is different, since only agreeing with Internexa the other party accesses
all networks with which we have agreements. On the other hand, I think there are
carriers whose busines differential remains the submarine cable to the United
States. They do not agree that traffic is carried locally. Internexa has a different
idea.
Convergencia: Would you say that Internexa operates as a kind of regional
NAP?
GG: It's a bit pretentious, but that's the dream: to be a network with an IXP in each
node. The dream is to have a Latin American Internet.
Convergencia: Does it not overlap with UNASUR regional backbone project?
GG: We have participated in meetings with Unasur, we have made our
contribution. But we envision that when something can be done, it should be done
and not wait.
Convergencia: Unasur fiber optic ring is approached as the backbone of
telecommunications networks in the region. May that role be filled by
Internexa?
GG: Internexa can be the backbone of Unasur.
Convergencia: What similarities are there between the South American and
Central American project, in which one are you involved?
GG: Central America electric power companies made up the consortium EPR (from
Spanish, Empresa Proprietaria de la Red). There ISA participates with 11%, which
owns Internexa. We participate in REDCA, which is the telecommunications
subsidiary of EPR. The project was delayed due to problems in the use of
corridors, but this year it became operational. The idea is to link Panama, Costa
Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. Also, through the
electric interconnection planned between Colombia and Panama, Central and
South America would remain linked.
Convergencia: Can it be extended to Mexico?GG: Mexican Comisión Federal de
Electricidads is art of EPR. That is why it is being evaluated to interconnect with its
network in Mexico and reach even the United States. In 2015 it could be achieved.
It would benefit the entire region with services in the interior of the countries,
because for said purpose, capillarity is needed. With submarine cables it is not
achieved.
Convergencia: But you also use submarine cables.
GG: Yes, we rented lambdas on cables of third parties. We use them mostly for
connectivity to the US, because some contents are not in regional CDN and
because CDN need to be periodically cooled. We also use them to link specific
points when it is most convenient than reaching by land.
Convergencia: What percentage of content that is transported in the region is
of great social networks?
GG: In Latin America over 50% of traffic is related to entertainment. That has to
change. In developed countries it is lower.
Convergencia: Argentina is one of the last markets in which you raided. Are
they satisfied with the results of 2014?
GG: We met the plans. We have spent two years on the market and the first ones
are tough. But this year we achieved a positive EBITDA and reached a breakeven.
In the coming months we expect to get profits.
Convergencia: Did you deploy your own network?
GG: We acquired rights on dark fiber, we added some ancillary own paths and also
hired capability of third parties. The idea is to continue expanding.
We work with cooperatives and Internet providers in the interior but also with major
operators. Internexa model supports governments, and large and small operators.
Of the four great operators nationwide we work with three.
Convergencia: Do you have a data center of your own in Argentina?
GG: No, we hire accommodation