SA's Fastest Growing Mobile APN provider
Pool your mobile data across the 3 major networks.
Gain real-time insights and more control of all mobile data usage across your company and start banking the savings.
Benefits:
- Easily control application usage
- Lock SIM cards to devices
- Easily manage bulk SIMS
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What our customers say
Saicom’s APN solution provides a seamless connection to our network, allows us to control the data we use, and very importantly, has saved us a considerable amount of money.
Tashwill Carelse
IT Director, Rentokil
We have been through various service providers and managing the hundreds of SIMs in our business was always a pain. Once we found Saicom's APN management platform managing our mobile data has been hassle-free ever since. Saicom's platform is brilliant. I don't know if there is anything else in the market that comes close.
Ivor Kettles
Chief Information Officer, Intercape
Saicom was willing to do whatever was necessary to ensure our systems were working optimally. The company adapts to our needs and manages our network and telephony outcomes on our behalf.
Darryl Spratt
IT Support Manager, Ipsos
We have been APN clients of Saicom since April 2023, and have found their service and responsiveness to be excellent. We are very happy with their APN management platform that is feature-rich and affords us insightful data.
Richard Quinlan
Director, Lazer Communications
The move to Saicom’s APN solution has not only improved the set-up times for provisioning our timing boxes, but we are able to provide a better service and greater timing capabilities to race organisers; participants and spectators.
Craig Eldridge
Technical Director, Finish Time
We have been using Saicom’s Mobile APN solution for several years and are very satisfied. It has helped us ensure that our mobile workforce across the country is always connected, and given us all the necessary information and insights. We foresee our partnership with Saicom continuing well into the future.
Marc de Jager
Systems and IT Manager, Studio 88
3 Steps To Start Saving Your Business Money
Follow these three simple steps to get your tailored technology solution up and running with Saicom.
Step 1
Book a demo of our APN portal and help us understand your businesses APN requirements.
Step 2
Get a customised proposal within 48 hours of the demo.
Step 3
Enjoy greater insight into, and control of, mobile data used in your business and start banking the savings.
Key features
Application usage breakdown
Benefits
Reseller Whitelabeling
Saicom offers resellers the opportunity to entirely customise the mobility portal with their own branding.
Public APN and Private APN
Saicom’s Public APN provides mobile Internet access, allowing your mobile workforce to connect to the Internet, on common ports and protocols. Saicom can supply you with “data only” SIM cards or we can migrate your existing postpaid / contract SIM cards to any of our APNs.
Public APN
Each SIM would be reflected on the Saicom Mobility Portal, such that accounting of data usage can be recorded. IP addresses are allocated dynamically, traffic is routed out to the Internet via a centralised Fortigate Firewall. With the “Firewall Lite” bolt-on solution, static IP addresses are assigned in order to facilitate source-based category and application blocking. Monitoring, thresholds, and data caps are configured on an individual level using the Saicom Mobility Portal – our mobility management platform.
Private APN
Private APN’s can be likened to a VPN on a GSM network. They provide a customised routing configuration, allowing mobile users to connect into your headquarters, usually via MPLS or an SD-WAN network. Traffic may also be routed through a dedicated or shared firewall, or into a Data Centre or Hosting environment.
A Private APN provides clients with a higher level of control and customisation than a Public APN and allows for application-level control as well as blocking and shaping when paired with Saicom’s Cloud Firewall.
Saicom’s APN offering
Saicom’s APN solution is available in 4 options: Public (Shared) APN, Public (Shared) APN with Firewall Lite and the Private APN Solution.
Public APN (Shared Firewall)
Public APN (Firewall Lite)
Public APN (Firewall Plus)
Private APN (Dedicated Firewall)
Public APN (Shared Firewall)
Reverse billed data (Data billed to the enterprise, not user)
Internet breakout
Device specific IP addressability (Static IP Address)
Internet breakout through Customised Firewall
Application category blocking only
Shared firewall with additional flexibilit
Inbound port requests (e.g. Security Camera, Servers etc)
Application category blocking only
Application category blocking only
MPLS VPN (Virtual Private Network)
Routing via private network XConnect or dedicated layer 2 links
Named APN (Customised “named” APN)
Suitable for:
Simple Internet Connectivity
Simple Internet Connectivity with Application blocking
Bespoke Internet Firewall Rules
Bespoke Internet Firewall Rules, VPN, MPLS, SD-WAN
Managing Mobile Data on Saicom’s Mobility Portal
Through a single pane of glass, your administrators will have full access to manage your departments, sites, individuals and associated SIM cards.
Saicom Mobility Portal allows enterprise administrators to centrally manage their mobile usage. Whether it’s managing M2M (IoT) Devices, tablets, Mifi Routers, LTE Routers, Laptops or Mobile phones, Saicom Mobility Portal aggregates all data from these GSM devices into one easy to use platform.
Through the platform, administrators can make use of:
Application Reporting
Application layer usage reporting (e.g. Facebook, Youtube, Salesforce etc)
Analytics
View graphing and analytics to understand usage patterns
Centralised Bundle
All SIM cards, across all networks, consume off a central enterprise bundle
Friendly Device Names
The naming of SIMs (Friendly name e.g. Greg’s iPhone)
Capping
Configure data capping on individuals. Each connection to the network will require a SIM card. Each individual can be assigned multiple SIM cards (up-to 5) with a single individual data cap
Pairing of ICCID to IMEI (Phone to SIM Card)
This feature renders a SIM card useless unless used with the intended device
Soft Lock
Manually soft lock and unlock SIMs in real-time
Topups
Administrators can top up individual’s SIMs with additional data (out of centralised enterprise bundle)
Organise SIMs
Manage multiple APN’s, Sites, Departments, Individuals and SIM cards
Notifications
Custom notification percentages with notifications sent to WhatsApp, Telegram, SMS and Email
APN Contract term options
Saicom’s APN solution is flexible enough to cater for clients contract term requirements. We offer 12 and 24 month contractual terms. The table below highlights the options per contract term.
Public APN (Shared Firewall)
Private APN (Dedicated Firewall)
Public APN
Upgrade bundle anytime 1
SIM Card fee (Month-to-Month) 2
Saicom Mobility Portal User Licenses 2
3 Month Cancellation Period
Access to all networks (Vodacom, MTN, Telkom) 3
Fortigate Firewall Lite - Add on 4
MPLS VPN (Virtual Private Network)
Private APN
1 Month “settling in” period 5
Downgrade 1 Tier (Every 6 Months)
Fortigate Firewall Plus- Add on
Fortigate Firewall Advanced - Add on 6
Auto Renew on contract term
- New bundle active 1st of new Month
- One calendar month cancellation period
- Default on Saicom public APN, else one private APN per network
- Public APN Only
- For the first month we allow enterprises who are not sure of their actual usage to use the first month’s traffic as a benchmark going forward. During this time no out-of-bundle traffic will be charged.
- Private APN Only
Frequently Asked Questions
What is mobile APN?
An APN (Access Point Name) is a gateway between a 3G/ LTE mobile network and another computer network, accessing the public internet or private virtual private network (VPN). It is a unique identifier that allows a connection to the network and identifies the data access services associated with your account. The APN is the exit point from the mobile network operator’s (MNO) 3G/LTE network into either the public internet or a private network.
What are the benefits of a mobile APN solution?
A corporate mobile APN can deliver a secure connection that creates a private network on a mobile device, protecting information and linking multiple devices together.
This means a business or organisation can manage multiple SIM each delivering data connectivity through a private APN to remote workers. The company can set usage caps for employees, and view bandwidth on an application level, for example whether the user is accessing social networks or work-related sites.
Ultimately, a mobile APN can significantly reduce data spend in the organisation as management has an integrated reporting environment with a universal view of how employees use their mobile data. A mobile APN solution can also use prepaid or postpaid data to provide complete budgetary control.
Is a mobile APN connection secure?
Yes. Authentication on the mobile APN network complies with all governance requirements to provide companies with the peace of mind that their connections are secure. It is the ideal solution for any organisation with a distributed workforce looking to optimise cost and improve employee efficiency.
How much does a mobile APN solution cost?
As the requirements for each organisation are unique, please complete our enquiry form and one of our expert consultants will contact you about the best APN service in South Africa.
Is the APN solution available outside South Africa?
Our APN solution is currently only available to our South African customers.
