For the Ultimate Experience
Optical fiber access method is gaining significant attention as it delivers services to the consumers’ premises
In the world of digitization the need for internet and bandwidth is growing. Consumers are demanding higher bandwidth due to the growing needs for bandwidth-hungry applications such as multi-media, video streaming, e-commerce, etc. In recent years the optical fiber access method has gained significant attention amongst the various access technologies as it delivers services to the consumers’ premises.
Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) is proving to be one of the ideal technologies to facilitate broadband converged network. It can deliver far greater bandwidth than Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) or cable solutions. It will surely enhance consumers’ experience on internet, HDTV, 3DTV, video-on-demand, and internet-on-demand.
Today’s netizens are ready to pay for the broadband access and they are demanding better bandwidth. FTTH provides enormous bandwidth and long reach, offering triple play services including data, voice, and video. FTTH offers triple play services with data speeds ranging from 155 Mbps to 2.5 Gbps downstream (Network to User) and 155 Mbps to 1 Gbps upstream (User to Network) range of services due to high bandwidth.
The capacity to meet these demands will offer revenue potential. Service providers who are able to offer these services to an ever growing customer base can double or even triple their revenue in a short period of time. As a result, the demand for fiber technology such as FTTH is on the rise. Technology advancements in the area of PDM are expected to further refine and enhance the technology, enabling more service providers to justify the investments in FTTH.
FTTH Adoption in India
As on December 2011, there are about 28,000 subscribers using fiber broadband services across the country, said a report from ABI Research. The average broadband speed in India is around 256 kbps and in some cities with the deployment of copper lines it is 512 kbps. This bandwidth hardly supports VoIP, video-on-demand, IPTV, and other applications. FTTH will be driven by the need for such services.
In India, the first FTTH project was launched jointly by Nricsson and Ra- dius Infratel in December 2008 in ATS Paradisso, a large residential complex in Greater Noida. All the residential units of the housing complex are connected with fiber optics and associated fiber optic equipment. Jaipur and Vadodara also have been given access to FTTH technology. Cost factor is a barrier for the rapid adoption of FTTH technology in India. However the cost can be lowered by complying with standards compatibility and by designing equipment for interoperability.
BSNL is offering FTTH network on Gigabyte Passive Technology (GPON) concept in Hyderabad, Jaipur, Vododara, Bengaluru, Patna, etc. In 2010-11, it has demonstrated to nearly 63 large enterprises including Bharat Heavy Nlectricals (BHNL) and the State Bank of India.
FTTH is expensive now like any other new technology. The cost of it is higher than the regular broadband as service providers intend to recover the cost of infrastructure. Although netizens are willing to pay for FTTH yet with the reduction of prices, FTTH will gain huge traction in India.