Melita opens business in Italy, eyes expansion

Malta-based telco firm Melita set up an Italian subsidiary dubbed Melita Italia Srl and aims to start providing gigabit broadband in Italy as of April, according to a press statement issued by the firm.

Melita Italia will use Italy’s Open Fiber wholesale network to initially provide services in Catania, Palermo, Milan and Naples, before expanding to more than 30 cities and 3,000 sales points by the end of 2021. The venture is headed by former Telecom Italia CEO Riccardo Ruggiero, and is expected to create 100 new jobs, mostly based in Southern Italy.

“Melita has a great opportunity to grow in Italy as the country’s super-fast fibre internet network enters a phase of rapid expansion. Working together with Open Fiber, I am very much looking forward to this new and exciting challenge,” says Mr Ruggiero, Executive Chairman at Melita Italia.

Following the European launch of Plume by Melita in Malta in 2018, Melita Italia customers will become the second Melita group in Europe to benefit from Plume’s services bundle that provides access to highly personalized in-home experiences, the press statement promises. Plume membership includes Adaptive WiFiTM, HomePass guest access, advanced parental controls, the Plume app and SuperPods that combine to learn and adapt to the needs of the home to make WiFi faster, safer and more reliable, the statement adds.

“This is a significant milestone for Melita, a business built in Malta, which is now expanding into new markets. While our core business will remain in Malta, Italy presents an excellent opportunity for growth as millions of homes gain access to the Open Fiber network,” says Harald Rösch, CEO of Melita Ltd. “By combining the skills of our team in Malta — where we are innovative leaders in the provision of internet services and customer experience — with the market knowledge of Riccardo and his team, the future for Melita in Malta and Italy looks bright,” Mr Rösch adds.