Asimmetric is a startup keen to monitor, optimise your Wi-Fi hotspot

Wi-Fi hotspots are quickly becoming the norm for customer service in any organisation whether that be a coffee shop, hospital or a public park. Yet, there still seem to be a lot of companies struggling to take full advantage of their Wi-Fi offering.

With its product now officially launched, Cape Town-based Asimmetric reckons it’s found a solution to monitor and optimise Wi-Fi networks so that providers can easily measure and manage the users’ experience.

“Today, there’s a disconnect between what Wi-Fi providers think they’re offering and what users are actually experiencing. Wi-Fi providers’ systems don’t see what their users see and they can’t detect many of the issues impacting users,” argues co-founder Fouad Zreik.

So how can businesses really benefit from Asimmetric’s solution?

“With our solution, providers can now manage their networks proactively. Engineers can see exactly what users are seeing,” explains Zreik. “They can detect issues immediately and begin troubleshooting without having to visit a site—saving time and money.”

Read more: SA’s free Wi-Fi initiative, Project Isizwe goes live in the Western Cape

The company explains that it uses bots to connect to a Wi-Fi network which mimics your average user by accessing Facebook, YouTube and so on. The network is then monitored and the provider gets access to analytics which can help run diagnostics and optimise user experience.

While the company has been founded in 2013, its solution was first introduced in mid-2014 and Asimmetric claims that its solution is implemented in major shopping malls, hospitals, hotels and restaurants in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.

“We’re on a mission to improve broadband experience for users, while helping network providers to scale up rapidly, manage the complexity that comes with having multiple systems and vendors, and contain operating costs,” says David Wilson CEO and co-founder of Asimmetric.

The company is also working on solutions beyond Wi-Fi. “We’re growing quickly,” says Zreik. “We are tackling some important challenges in mobile and fixed telecoms.” Asimmetric has attracted funding from telecoms industry leaders in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.