Rivals, constrained by DSL or cable, can't keep up. They might match on price, but offer just 8 Mbps in bandwidth, says To. "Or the price maybe three times our offer."
What's also impressive is that the company has remained profitable and, like few other carriers around the world, it has increased ARPU. HKBN's target is the very Chinese slogan of "3-high and 1-low," referring to high ARPU, high subs growth, high profit and low churn.
In its last full-year result HKBN reported 13.4% growth in sales, 34% higher ebitda and a 70% rise in after-tax profit to HK$212.8 million ($27.5million).
Its goals do not stop at 2016. Says CFO and company secretary Niq Lai: "We really want to build a legacy in Hong Kong. We want to be around in 20 to 30 years from now and be the leading operator.
"One of our core purposes is to experience the emotion of competition, winning and crushing competitors."
What the judges said: "For its extensive and diverse longhaul networks and its successful differentiation and competitive positioning in Asia's IP and capacity markets"