JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2009 | www.broadbandproperties.com | BROADBAND PROPERTIES | 15 H orizon Chillicothe Telephone has joined the Corning Con- nected Community Program to support the deployment of Corning optical fiber in Darbyville, Ohio, a vil- lage of fewer than 300 residents. HCT is using a USDA Rural Development grant to build an FTTH network; the project includes the Darbyville Com- munity Technology Center, which will house multiple computer terminals and videoconferencing equipment, serve as a wireless Internet access point for the sur- rounding park, and include dedicated space for educational purposes. Rural Development hosted an open house at the new center in November. Corning Cable Systems developed the program to assist developers in im- plementing fiber optic infrastructures into their building plans. Bill McKell, Horizon CEO, says, “Working with Corning through the Corning Con- nected Community Program, we can educate our customers on the benefits of FTTH and further increase the technol- ogy’s visibility.” Albany Mutual Telephone, a Min- nesota-based ILEC that is upgrading its network to FTTH (see our Decem- ber report), announced that it is work- ing with a professional services team from solution provider ADC to imple- ment this project. Albany Tel uses ADC equipment both in the central office (ADC’s FiberGuide fiber-management system and OMX splice bays), and in its outside plant (ADC’s 24-fiber Next Generation Frame and RiserGuide ca- ble-management system). Albany Tel is one of ADC’s first customers to place the multifiber assemblies and RiserGuide While many providers in the US seem to be in “wait-and-see” mode, countries as diverse as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and China plan major fiber deployments. By Masha Zager ■ Broadband Properties Waiting Out the Downturn Here; Expanding Abroad Waiting Out the Downturn Here; Expanding Abroad Horizon Chillicothe Uses USDA Grant to Deploy Fiber INDEPENDENT TELCOS T he economic downturn is taking its toll on FTTH de- ployments, if the number of new announcements com- ing our way is any indicator. Until recently, the slow- down in new housing was counterbalanced by the increase in MDU and municipal overbuilds. While our monthly fiber roundup is a decidedly unscientific sample – many projects are never formally announced and don’t come to our atten- tion until they’re no longer “news” – it does seem that even for non-greenfield projects, many would-be fiber deployers (and their sources of capital) are in wait-and-see mode. e good news is that planning continues to go forward, and the availability of economic recovery funds will un- doubtedly spur many new projects, both public and private. As we report below, the list of “shovel-ready” projects com- piled by the US Conference of Mayors includes a number of fiber builds. Most are for specialized municipal uses like public safety, but such networks can serve as the backbones for later FTTP deployments. We’re also encouraged to see major commitments to FTTH taking place in countries as different as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and China. Nations that were late adopters of telecommunications technology often went straight to mobile communications, bypassing the fixed-network stage entirely. Now some of them are reconsidering that decision, recognizing that fiber will be required to deliver the services of the 21st century. – MZ
Horizon Chillicothe Telephone has joined the Corning Con-nected Community Program
to support the deployment of Corning optical fiber in Darbyville, Ohio, a vil-lage of fewer than 300 residents. HCT is using a USDA Rural Development grant to build an FTTH network; the project includes the Darbyville Com-munity Technology Center, which will house multiple computer terminals and videoconferencing equipment, serve as a wireless Internet access point for the sur-rounding park, and include dedicated
space for educational purposes. Rural Development hosted an open house at the new center in November.
Corning Cable Systems developed the program to assist developers in im-plementing fiber optic infrastructures into their building plans. Bill McKell, Horizon CEO, says, “Working with Corning through the Corning Con-nected Community Program, we can educate our customers on the benefits of FTTH and further increase the technol-ogy’s visibility.”
Albany Mutual Telephone, a Min-
nesota-based ILEC that is upgrading its network to FTTH (see our Decem-ber report), announced that it is work-ing with a professional services team from solution provider ADC to imple-ment this project. Albany Tel uses ADC equipment both in the central office (ADC’s FiberGuide fiber-management system and OMX splice bays), and in its outside plant (ADC’s 24-fiber Next Generation Frame and RiserGuide ca-ble-management system). Albany Tel is one of ADC’s first customers to place the multifiber assemblies and RiserGuide
While many providers in the US seem to be in “wait-and-see” mode, countries as diverse as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and China plan major fiber deployments.
By Masha Zager ■ Broadband Properties
Waiting Out the Downturn Here; Expanding AbroadWaiting Out the Downturn Here; Expanding Abroad
Horizon Chillicothe Uses USDA Grant to Deploy Fiber
INDEPENDENT TELCOS
The economic downturn is taking its toll on FTTH de-ployments, if the number of new announcements com-ing our way is any indicator. Until recently, the slow-
down in new housing was counterbalanced by the increase in MDU and municipal overbuilds. While our monthly fiber roundup is a decidedly unscientific sample – many projects are never formally announced and don’t come to our atten-tion until they’re no longer “news” – it does seem that even for non-greenfield projects, many would-be fiber deployers (and their sources of capital) are in wait-and-see mode.
The good news is that planning continues to go forward, and the availability of economic recovery funds will un-doubtedly spur many new projects, both public and private. As we report below, the list of “shovel-ready” projects com-
piled by the US Conference of Mayors includes a number of fiber builds. Most are for specialized municipal uses like public safety, but such networks can serve as the backbones for later FTTP deployments.
We’re also encouraged to see major commitments to FTTH taking place in countries as different as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and China. Nations that were late adopters of telecommunications technology often went straight to mobile communications, bypassing the fixed-network stage entirely. Now some of them are reconsidering that decision, recognizing that fiber will be required to deliver the services of the 21st century.
solution alongside the active equipment in an Ethernet deployment. “The ADC equipment takes less space in the cen-tral office, but leaves enough room for growth – particularly important as we move toward more fiber and less cop-per,” says Tom Eveslage, network opera-tions manager for Albany Tel.
Today Albany Tel’s network consists of 85 percent copper lines and 15 per-cent fiber lines. Eveslage said those pro-portions should be reversed by the end of this five-year project. Using an active
Ethernet architecture, Albany Tel is de-ploying greenfield fiber networks – pri-marily in new-home developments – and also building over existing copper lines. Network speeds up to 100 Mbps will be available, ten times faster than Albany Tel’s current broadband offerings.
Texas-based FTTH provider NTS Communications selected Razorsight’s AIM solution to automate its network cost management functions and provide related analytic capabilities. In 2008 NTS Communications was acquired by
Xfone; as integration activities began, it became clear that the companies’ legacy cost management solutions could not ac-curately manage their combined assets. The Web-based AIM solution allows NTS to achieve the balance of internal staff, systems and third-party providers that will minimize its network costs. NTS chief operating officer Brad Wor-thington says the software is a scalable solution that will help the company ac-commodate the growth it expects. BBP
Verizon came a step closer to launching FiOS services in the District of Columbia when Mayor Adrian M. Fenty approved the company’s cable franchise. One more step
still remains – a Congressional review. As part of the 15-year agreement, Verizon will make FiOS TV available throughout the District over the next nine years. The first residents will be able to order FiOS TV within a year.
In New York City, Verizon has expanded FiOS to additional areas in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, making good on its
FiOS to Inaugurate Service in Washington, DC
RBOC UPDATE
Verizon reported surprisingly strong earnings for the fourth quarter – actually bettering 4Q07 by some measures – driven by customer and revenue growth. “Verizon has shown that it is able to compete effec-tively in this economic environment,” Chairman and CEO Ivan Seidenberg said in announcing the financial results. “The Verizon story in 2008 was one of cus-tomer growth and product innovation, based on the strategic technology and broadband infrastructure investments we have made year after year.”
One of those strategic infrastructure investments is the company’s fiber-to-the-premises network. Veri-zon Wireline reported record growth in the number of new customers for FiOS TV and FiOS Internet.
FiOS TV FiOS Internet Net adds 4Q08 303,000 282,000Net adds 4Q07 226,000 244,000Year-end data:Total customers 2008 1.9 million 2.5 millionTotal customers 2007 0.9 million 1.5 millionPenetration rate 2008 20.8% 24.9%Penetration rate 2007 16.0% 20.7%Premises marketed 2008 9.2 million 10 million
Premises passed at year-end 2008: 12.7 million, or 40% of total Verizon landline footprint.
ARPU for FiOS customers at year-end 2008: $133 per month.
Verizon Reports Record Growth in FiOS Customers for 4Q08
Even in a down economy, Verizon’s added more FiOS
customers than ever before, boosting the company’s
earnings per share.
pledge to build out the network to half a million homes by the end of 2008 (and eventually to make FiOS available to the entire city). Door-to-door marketing and other presales activities have been taking place in all of these neighborhoods in preparation for the introduction of FiOS TV. Verizon also opened a retail store in Staten Island, another borough of New York City.
Despite its recent focus on big cities, Verizon isn’t neglect-ing the suburbs and smaller cities where it first started its FiOS project. In the last month it gained franchise approvals in com-munities in New York, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts and began rolling out video services in new communities in those three states as well as in California.
Verizon also announced that FiOS TV now provides 100 or more channels of high-definition (HD) television in every market where the TV service is offered, and that FiOS TV customers can now control their Home Media DVRs remotely, either online or via certain Verizon Wireless handsets. BBP
The US Conference of Mayors released a report on urban infrastructure projects that are “ready to go” as part of an economic recovery package – more than 15,000 proj-
ects that meet local needs, can be funded through existing fed-eral channels, can start quickly when funding is received, and can generate significant numbers of jobs. These 15,000 proj-ects include a number of special-purpose fiber optic networks, mostly for public safety and traffic control, along with several community WiFi projects. (Some of the municipal fiber proj-ects will be able to serve as the backbones for FTTH rollouts in future years.)
In addition, there were three requests to build broadband networks:
• ThecityofBridgeport,Connecticut,requested$10millionto install a citywide broadband network for both commu-nity and municipal use, creating 40 jobs.
• ThecityofMiami,Florida,requested$28milliontobuildamunicipal broadband network that would create 560 jobs.
• TheAustinIndependentSchoolDistrictinAustin,Texas,requested$15milliontoprovideaccessforlow-incomestu-dents to broadband communications from their homes, a project that would create 40 jobs.
The full report is available at www.usmayors.org/main streeteconomicrecovery/documents/mser-report-20081219.pdf.
LUS Fiber, the new telecommunications division of Lafay-ette Utilities System in Lafayette, Louisiana, began serving customers in February. The company will continue rolling out service in a phased fashion over the next two years.
The municipally owned utility is offering television, Inter-net and phone services to residents and businesses of Lafayette; triple play services start at $84.85permonth. In addition tocompetitive pricing, LUS Fiber is introducing innovative fea-tures including a TV Web portal and a 100 Mbps peer-to-peer intranet. The TV Web portal, available to all digital TV sub-scribers, allows consumers to connect to the Internet through their TV set-top boxes. The peer-to-peer intranet allows LUS Fiber customers to communicate and share files with each other at 100 Mbps, even if their connections to the public Internet are at lower speeds.
Another municipal utility inaugurating telecom services after a long planning and construction period is the Tulla-homa Utilities Board (TUB) in Tullahoma, Tennessee. TUB is launching triple play services over its new fiber-to-the-home network, LightTUBe. Customers of the electric utility were given the opportunity to sign up for television, Internet and telephone services beginning in the fall of 2008. Internet con-nections are available at speeds up to 100 Mbps downstream/30 Mbps upstream, and high-definition television service is avail-able as an option.
FTTH subscribers in Lafayette, LA, will be able to communicate at 100 Mbps within the network, whatever
their Internet access speeds.
Shovel-Ready Broadband Projects Set to GoMUNICIPALITIES
The city of North St. Paul, Minnesota, is planning a ref-erendum in February to approve the construction of a fiber-to-the-home network, which it is calling PolarNet, and which it hopes will “provide an answer to the question of what distin-guishes North St. Paul from other communities in Minnesota as a place to live, work or play.” The project has been more than fiveyears in themaking,andwill require issuing$18.5mil-lion in general-obligation bonds. A majority vote is required in order to issue the bonds, extend the existing fiber backbone
to homes and offer Internet and video services; a 65 percent supermajority is needed in order to provide telephone services. If the referendum passes, the city plans to begin building in the spring and start offering services to customers in late fall 2009, possibly through a private-sector partner. The network will serve schools and businesses as well as residences.
In Glenwood Springs, Colorado, the city government has been considering extending its municipal fiber optic network, which currently provides connectivity to businesses, to some or all residential neighborhoods. After a referendum in April 2008 demonstrated public interest in residential FTTH ser-vices, the city has been conducting due diligence to determine how to proceed. In a recent meeting, the city council agreed to go forward with a market assessment as a next step.
In Red Wing, Minnesota, the city council accepted a fi-ber feasibility study produced by two consultants. The study concluded that a fiber infrastructure was needed to support the communications needs of the city and county offices and the school system, and that extending the network to local homes and businesses would be financially feasible and would boost economic development. The city council asked staff to move forward with a due diligence process, and it is considering a referendum on FTTH as a way of gauging public support and likely take rates for services. The referendum will be legally re-quired if the city decides to offer telephone services, and in any case will provide information needed by potential funders.
In another sign of the financial recovery of UTOPIA, the FTTH network operated by a Utah municipal consortium, one of the member cities, Centerville, is reported by local press to be considering an expansion of the network. The city’s re-development authority proposed a loan/lease investment in the network to bring high-speed services to Centerville’s business community. BBP
Fiber to the home is often described as a natural monopoly, so that “whoever is first with fiber, wins.”
But in Paris, France, multiple providers have been overbuilding each other’s fi-ber networks with the encouragement of the French national regulatory agency. The agency, ARCEP, has tried to pro-mote competition while minimizing the costs of building multiple competing networks. Because most Parisians live in low-rise MDU housing, one potential area for cooperation is in-building wir-ing. Recently three large providers – in-cumbent Orange (France Telecom), ca-ble giant Numericable, and alternative operator SFR, which recently merged with Neuf Cegetel – signed a detailed agreement for sharing in-building fiber optic cables.
In most neighborhoods where they are deploying networks, the three pro-viders agreed to use a “single-mode” solution: Each residential unit will be equipped with a special fiber allocated to the operator chosen by the sub-scriber. But in one Paris neighborhood and in a provincial town, the providers are testing a “multimode” solution – a new technique in which four fibers are installed in each building and each op-erator can connect to the network at the shared access point.
The fourth major FTTH deployer in Paris, Free (Iliad), has not signed onto the agreement. According to France Telecom, Free is demanding that the four-fiber solution – which is still being tested – be deployed everywhere. France Telecom says this approach will make it difficult for residents of buildings al-ready wired by Free to choose a different operator. France Telecom accuses Free of “blocking the implementation of a general agreement on the mutualization of vertical fibering, a prerequisite for the large-scale deployment of fiber.”
The agreement is open to other opera-tors – in case Free changes its mind – and the three signers have agreed to adapt their terms and conditions based on feed-back from tests and early deployments.
Also in France, communications wholesaler Axione is planning to build out FTTH networks and offer triple play services in 11 areas through public service outsourcing contracts. Axione will use Ethernet, IP/MPLS and FTTH technologies from Alcatel-Lucent. Al-catel-Lucent will also provide project management, network design, installa-tion, integration and maintenance.
“Economic development and growth for our customers across the country is the goal of this project,” says Jacques Beauvois, Chairman of Axione, and Pierre Barnabé, Vice President of Alca-tel-Lucent’s activities in France, adds, “This project demonstrates Axione’s commitment to bridging the digital divide which ultimately will boost eco-nomic and social development in re-gional communities.”
Andorra Telecom (Servei de Tele-communications d’Andorra), which is deploying a fiber-to-the-premises network throughout the principality of Andorra, announced that it is using the VertiCasa cable system from Prysmian Cables & Systems in multiple dwelling units. Andorra Telecom’s project began in 2008 and will reach all 35,000 homes and businesses by 2010. The company chose Prysmian’s VertiCasa for its easy fiber access and break-out, which re-duces installation times and the need for skilled labor. The system includes a main riser cable of up to 48 fibers, which can be branched directly to individual subscribers on different floors without splicing the fiber in the riser.
Prysmian has recently been involved in a number of other projects in Europe, Middle East, Russia and China utiliz-
ing VertiCasa along with other products from its FTTH portfolio.
Swiss incumbent Swisscom has se-lected Huber+Suhner products and sys-tems for its fiber-to-the-home network. Huber+Suhner, a specialist in electrical and optical connectivity, will supply fi-ber management systems to Swisscom for local exchanges. As a first step, it will supply customer-specific “LISA” high-density fiber optic management systems for the exchanges in Basel, Geneva and Zurich. Swisscom has used fiber optic technology for years, first to connect its exchanges and later for business custom-ers. It is now bringing fiber to private households in order to enable applica-tions such as HDTV and teleworking, as well as faster transfer of large data files.
Dutch fiber-to-the-home operator Reggefiber has signed a contract with Genexis for fiber-to-the-home gateways in Reggefiber’s FTTH network, now be-ing rolled out in more than 10 Dutch cities. Genexis’ FiberXport gateway will deliver broadband Internet, VoIP and television services to homes on the net-work. “Fiber to the home is the last step to be taken in order to offer end users real access to the digital highway,” says Peter Kamphuis, Reggefiber’s director of operations. “The Genexis FTTH gate-way enables us to deliver triple play and more while maintaining low installation and operating cost.”
Reggefiber is deploying Europe’s largest FTTH network, with plans to connect at least 2.5 million homes in the Netherlands by 2013. In December its joint venture with incumbent telco KPN to deliver FTTH was approved by the Dutch Competition Authority.
Dansk Bredband, a broadband communications supplier in Denmark, has chosen Enablence as the PON sup-plier for its rollout of fiber to 50,000 homes over the next two years. The first
Europe: French Providers Agree to Share In-Building Wiring
project using Enablence equipment will be implemented in North Funen, Denmark, together with the NEF Foundation, an innovative Danish power utility. (Dansk Bredband delivers its triple-play solution over both its own fiber optic network and those of energy companies.)
Mikkel Jensen, Dansk Bredband’s technical director, says, “Until now, many businesses have thought that it was benefi-cial to use only larger equipment suppliers, but in my view, the fact that Enablence’s Networks Division is focused exclu-sively on access networks is an absolute strength. It provides far greater flexibility and allows the company to respond with more focused customer-specific solutions.”
Swedish real estate developer Heba Fastighets signed an eight-year agreement with communications provider Telia to provide triple-play services over fiber to the home to its prop-erties in Stockholm, Lidingö, Huddinge and Borlänge. Alto-gether about 3,000 units will be offered telephony, broadband and television services; installation began in January and is ex-pected to be completed by the end of the year. Heba Fastighets president Lennart Karlsson says, “Modern communications and fast broadband are high on the wish list of today’s hom-eowners. We are both proud and pleased to offer our tenants this opportunity.” Telia already has about 55,000 FTTH cus-tomers and is under pressure from the Swedish government to open its network to competing providers.
BREAktHROUGH PROjECtS In nIGERIA AnD SAUDI ARABIANigerian telecom company 21st Century Technologies has signed a contract with Ericsson to supply, build and integrate a nationwide residential FTTH network, using Ericsson’s GPON and IMS technology. Ericsson says the project represents a ma-jor breakthrough in West Africa, a market largely dominated by mobile communications. Deployment to the first 10,000 homes started in January.
Ericsson will provide 21st Century Technologies with an end-to-end deep-fiber access network based on its EDA 1500 solution for GPON access and its Ribbonet and Micronet air-blown fiber systems. The contract also includes Redback SmartEdge 1200 routers and Ericsson’s IMS solution for the core network, enabling access to a wide range of multimedia services. Ericsson will also be responsible for network design, deployment and systems integration services.
Saudi Telecom Company (STC) has started work on an FTTH network in Saudi Arabia that will provide Internet ac-cess to residential customers at speeds up to 100 Mbps. The net-work will be deployed in stages, beginning with neighborhoods in the major cities. Engineer Saad Bin Dhafer Al-Qahtani, STC’s vice president for residential services, calls the project a “huge leap in Internet services,” saying customers will be able to enjoy services such as VoIP, VoD and electronic gaming.
China’s Ministry of Science and Technology announced a plan to build a nationwide fiber optic network that could de-liver triple-play services – including Internet access at speeds of 100 Mbps – to all households. A prototype network has been operating in the Yangtze River Delta since December 2006, delivering services to about 30,000 users, and its success led the
Ministry to conclude that a large-scale investment in FTTH made sense. The project’s timetable and budget have not yet been announced, but it appears that it will require investment by private telecommunications companies.
Brasil Telecom is expanding its fiber-to-the-home network in the cities of Brasilia, Curitiba, Goiania, Porto Alegre and Florianópolis and plans to launch residential services at speeds ranging from 14 Mbps to 100 Mbps.
The City of Miyoshi, Japan, is deploying PacketFront’s Broadband Business Engine, a tool to improve service and subscriber management, on its FTTH system. Working with Soliton Systems K.K., PacketFront adapted the product to sup-port the Japanese language. The City of Miyoshi has connected 7,500 households with fiber and has the potential to reach 16,000 households during the next few years. It is already using other PacketFront equipment and systems to run its network.
Japanese service provider KDDI, which entered the fiber business by buying networks from Tokyo Electric Power and Chubu Tele-Communications, has launched the first com-mercial deployment of 2.5 GePON, using Turbo-EPON chips from Teknovus. These chips were introduced two years ago to
offer a smooth upgrade path from the 1.25G standard to the 10G standard. (Turbo-EPON is compliant with IEEE 1.25G EPON specifications but offers an enhanced Turbo-EPON mode for 2.5G operation.)
A second 2.5 GePON deployment was announced shortly afterward, with LG Powercom, one of the largest communi-cations service providers in Korea, building out a large-scale FTTH/FTTB network using a 2.5 GePON solution from Ko-rean supplier Ubiquoss. The solution is also based on Tekno-vus’ 2.5G Turbo-EPON chip. LG Powercom’s network will provide high-speed data, voice and a range of advanced video services for residential and business subscribers in single-family units and multitenant units.
The Australian government’s plans to develop a na-tional high-speed network have made little progress to date. “A year of wasted opportunity, a year of stagnation and uncertainty,” was an opposition politician’s verdict on 2008, which ended with the country’s largest com-munications provider being disqualified, essentially on a technicality, from building the network.
But inaction on the national level hasn’t stopped smaller providers and local governments from proceed-ing with their own plans. Brisbane, Australia’s third larg-est city, is spending about half a million dollars (US) this fiscal year toward detailed design of an FTTH network that would use the city’s existing fiber network as a base. Here’s Jane Prentice, the Brisbane city councilor who proposed the plan, explaining the history and purpose of the proposal:
Recently, when I joined the Lord Mayor on his trade mission to Korea in August, we observed the fact that they enjoy fiber speeds of between 100 megabits to 1 gigabit per second – absolutely amazing, Lord Mayor. This re-emphasized the benefits that Brisbane would have if we had high-speed fiber connections. It was from this trade mission, where we viewed the benefits to local businesses firsthand, that this project arose.
Since then, we have even had representatives from ETRI, the company who undertook the roll-out of fiber in Korea, visit Brisbane to assess the possibility of fiber rollout in Brisbane and the benefits it could bring. The economic benefits of connecting Brisbane with high-speed fiber con-nections are considerable. Various studies which have been previously conducted suggest that businesses can achieve additional cost savings equivalent to 4.7 percent of business costs by up-grading from narrowband Internet connection to a broadband connection.
The implementation of a high-speed network could boost the Brisbane and Moreton region’s economy by [$3.5 billion; Australian $5 billion] and create more than 15,000 jobs over the next five years. On top of these economic benefits, there
are also the broader benefits to productivity, the environment, and to the community in general. Rough estimates show that the Council could po-tentially save [more than $60 million; Australian $95.5 million] a year in the value of time saved by a high-speed fiber network.
The project also has a number of social ben-efits. For example, I assume that even councilors in this place, the first thing you do when you get to your office in the morning, as do businessmen around the city, is turn on your computer and do your e-mails that have come in overnight. If we had FTTP… what people could do is do that work from home and then go to the city in off-peak. Look at the effects that would have on reducing traffic congestion around this city in the peak hours.
There are also the obvious environmental ben-efits. Imagine high-definition online videoconfer-encing enabling you to easily interact with some-one, whether they were a block away or half a world away. The environmental benefits of saving on these short- and long-term trips by car or even airplane would certainly be significant. Overall, the project would allow residents and businesses more flexibility, and open up a greater capacity for innovation.
Of course, the rollout of high-speed fiber con-nections is already being considered as part of the Federal Government’s national broadband network. However, I have to say I am not confi-dent that this solution can be delivered in a time-frame acceptable to Brisbane’s needs, or that with proposed speeds of just 12 megabits per second, and indeed, maximum speeds using ADSL2 of 24 megabits per second, that it would be fast enough for Brisbane’s requirements. Indeed, both the Lord Mayor and I were concerned that Brisbane was not at the top of their list for rolling out this fiber network, and it very much highlighted the fact that, if we want to achieve this progress, we need to deliver it ourselves.
Brisbane, Australia: “We Need to Deliver It Ourselves”
Pakistan Telecommunications Ltd. (PTCL), a ma-jor communications provider in Pakistan, announced that it will be deploying GPON fiber networks in order to cater to “bandwidth-hungry broadband applications.” Pilot projects are already being rolled out in the three major cities of Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad.
Local press reports that CAT Telecom, a state-owned tele-communications company in Thailand, will deploy an FTTH
network in the beach resort city of Pattaya. The network is expected to pass 20,000 premises by the end of 2009 and will support businesses, schools and residences. The city is also planning to offer free WiFi on the beaches, in an effort to pro-mote Pattaya as an “IT paradise location.” BBP
