Background

The United States is third among the world’s economies in the total number of FTTH households at 3.3 million, and is in 10th position in the global ranking with 2.9 percent market penetration. What’s most encouraging is that the US continues to experience the highest rate of growth of any economy in terms of FTTH subscribers – doubling the number of connections year over year.

This is due largely to FiOS deployments by market leader Verizon (VZ) and to ongoing buildouts by more than 600 smaller independent network providers across the country. "Aggressive FTTH deployment in the US has created a lot of buzz about this exciting technology, and the word of mouth from early FTTH subscribers is driving growth and fueling further deployments."  For more information, please see:

www.ftthcouncil.org

As we predicted several years ago, GPON has become the preferred last mile delivery technology for FTTP, with BPON, EPON and point to point optical Ethernet losing market share with declining sales. The nascent GPON market posted healthy growth worldwide in 1Q08, driven by service provider investments in broadband access networks, according to market research firm Infonetics Research (www.infonetics.com).  Even VZ is moving FiOS new installs to GPON with trials offering 100M bits/sec downstream. (see Ken Pyle’s comment below).

During the same period, BPON equipment sales declined significantly and EPON sales dipped, together bringing the overall PON market down three percent to $417 million worldwide in 1Q08. "Service providers increasingly turn to PON as the next generation of residential broadband access, primarily in areas where DSL service penetration has reached maturity and operators are looking to increase average revenue per user (ARPU)," says Mark Showalter, directing analyst for broadband networks at Infonetics Research.

FTTN vs FTTP: Which is the right last mile topology?

While AT&T ( U-Verse) has gone with fiber to the node (FTTN) and VDSL to the premises, Verizon has been very aggressive in its FTTH/ FTTP (FiOS) deployment. Many independent telcos have also rolled out FTTP, as per the announcements noted in this article.   Despite the higher build out costs and potential regulatory obstacles, we think FTTP will be the clear winner over FTTN.

Our opinion is that new video services, like multiscreen IPTV with simultaneous recording, will cause a "bandwidth explosion." Despite regulatory obstacles, we think that network operators will be forced to deploy fiber as close to the home as possible to provide the necessary increased bandwidth needed for new services. It looks like its starting to happen now with several independent telcos announcing their FTTP roll outs. For additional information, please see:

http://www.bbpmag.com/2008issues/aug08/AugSep08_FirstMile.pdf

http://www.bbpmag.com/2008issues/aug08/AugSep08_WhyFiber.pdf 

FTTH growth stays on track as connections rise to 3.76 million North American households

The upgrading of North America’s last mile networks with end-to-end fiber is continuing at a robust pace, with fiber to the home (FTTH) arriving at more than 1.6 million households over the past year, bringing the total number of FTTH subscribers to 3.76 million, according to a study released today by the Fiber-to-the-Home Council.

The study, by RVA Market Research (www.rvallc.com), pegged the annual growth rate for fiber to the home in North America at 76 percent, the highest of any country or region in the world.

http://fibresystems.org/cws/article/yournews/35944

Here’s a snapshot of recent FTTP/FTTH activity from independent telcos in the U.S.:

Dumont Telephone is rolling out fiber to the premises (FTTP) in Dumont Iowa (pop. 676), replacing the aging copper in its network. As a result, its maintenance costs are going down, and trouble tickets have dropped dramatically. One of the company’s four technicians is planning to retire some time in the next five years, said Roger Kregel, Dumont’s general manager, and Kregel may not replace him. "On a four-person team, that’s quite a bit," he said.  

To read the rest of the article, click here.

Embarq looks to make FTTP a bigger part of its future

A top executive with Embarq says the company cut the cost of fiber-to-the-premises deployment 19% per home this year and can shave an additional 5% next year, bringing the cost of FTTP in line with copper-wiring solutions. James Hansen, senior vice president of network services for the company, which currently deploys FTTP in greenfields, says he now sees a day when Embarq will "do a video play on network-based facilities."

http://telephonyonline.com/fttp/news/embarq-cut-fttp-deployment-costs-0923/

Comporium Communications Surpasses 6,300 Subscribers with FTTP gear from Enablence

Comporium Communications, has now connected more than 6,300 residential and business customers with Enablence’s FTTP equipment, and will now begin to deploy the TRIDENT7(TM) Universal Access Platform GPON solution. Comporium, based in Rock Hill, South Carolina, is one of the largest American ILECs (Independent Local Exchange Carriers) and cable television operators with almost 100,000 customers throughout its service area.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/comporium-communications-surpasses-6300-subscribers/story.aspx?guid=%7BD245EE44-2492-480D-91D3-C8F91B426012%7D&dist=hppr

Wave7 Network Architect says DOCSIS 3.0 Not a Competitive Threat to FTTP

FTTP providers need not fear DOCSIS 3.0, says according to Jim Farmer, chief network architect for Enablence’s Wave7 FTTx networks division.Fiber-to-the-premises providers don’t have much to fear from DOCSIS 3.0 technology, which boosts the bandwidth of cable broadband networks, according to Jim Farmer, chief network architect for Enablence’s Wave7 FTTx networks division.  Click here to read the rest of the article.

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Please contact the author (alan@viodi.com) if you’re interested in FTTP/FTTH consulting or other research projects.

Popularity: 18% [?]

 Donate to the Village School by entering the amount above and clicking the "Donate" button.

It was once said, “What is good for General Motors is good for America.” Fast-forward fifty years and the engine of the economy is no longer nuts and bolts manufacturing, but the dissemination of information and entertainment at little to no direct cost. Maybe the new catch-phrase should be, “What is good for Google is good for the U.S.”

Amazing, that a business built on search has so many different and wide-ranging initiatives; from the creation of a smart-electrical grid to assembling the largest library ever assembled. Not all of Google’s initiatives will necessarily prove to be successful, since they are often competing with entrenched ways of doing things, but Google is definitely changing the way business is done.  

Google Checkout is one of their product initiatives which has made some traction, but that still pales in size compared to the entrenched competition. Google Checkout’s main competitor, PayPal , works great and is an excellent alternative to the traditional bank merchant accounts that require monthly fees and have barriers to sign-up. When I investigated it in the past, there was no compelling reason to try Google Checkout as it seemed comparable to my existing PayPal service, but not necessarily better.

The annual Halloween fundraiser at my sons’ elementary school gave me the reason I needed to try Google Checkout. One of the things Google is doing to encourage use of their service is waiving all processing fees for non-profits until the end of this year. That was enough to convince the school treasurer (aka my wife) that we should abandon our tried and true merchant account that worked so smoothly the previous year.

Set-up of Google Checkout was straightforward, except when we got to the part of embedding the “donate” button onto a web site. Since we didn’t have enough time to work it through the school webmaster, we decided to place the donate button on the Google Site associated with our Google account (see above). Setting up Google Site was easy enough, but after about an hour of trying, we gave up on embedding the donate button in our Google Site; this should be dirt simple to connect these two Google products.

As a quick fix, we embedded Google Checkout on the Viodi web site and it seemed to work great. Still, the idea of dozens of people chomping at the bit to pay for their winning bids after a long evening of auction and carnival fun had me a bit on edge. Fortunately, we were seemingly ready with our three computers and their browsers pointed to the Google Checkout button on the Viodi web site.

Unfortunately, my concerns were justified, as we ran into problems with our first transaction. Google Checkout requires an email address and password. What we found out (and this is probably documented somewhere, but we didn’t bother to look) is that a person can enter an email address and make up a password. He will then receive a confirmation email that also asks if the person wants to create a gmail account (kudos to Google for good-viral marketing).

If the email the person enters, however, is somehow associated with a gmail account (e.g., it could be the email he used to open his gmail account), then the password he enters must be his gmail password. Probably ¼ of the people could not remember their gmail password and, as a result, some of the checkouts took as long as 15 minutes; ouch.

If Google had just made the email and password fields optional, we would have saved a great deal of time and reduced unneeded frustration. Fortunately, our frustrations were tempered with the knowledge that we were saving more than $200 in transaction costs. So despite our minor issues with its payment processing system, Google was good for us.
 

Popularity: 8% [?]

This year’s CTIA show occurred just one month before the 25th anniversary of the first commercial cellular call. At the opening keynote session, Steve Largent, President and CEO of CTIA, made a few opening remarks and then moderated a panel of several wireless executives. Steve, a former All Pro NFL receiver, glibly rifled off the following statistics from CTIA’s Wireless Industry Survey: $15B wireless data revenues in the US during the last six months (20% of carrier revenues vs only 10% two years ago), US has overtaken Europe in 3G subscribers, 75M text messages sent each month (a 160% year over year growth rate as of June). Steve also noted that the mobile content business is robust and growing rapidly. It’s likely that user-generated mobile content (text, photos, videos and audio) will far surpass user-generated content on PCs.

Mr. Largent predicted that going forward, wireless broadband would experience rapid change, higher speeds, and much more choice for consumers. Capabilities such as GPS, video, MP3, photo sharing, location based services (including the ability to get directions to a desired store or restaurant) would be forthcoming.

During the panel session, wireless industry executives indicated that walled gardens were a thing of the past and that wireless networks are opening up. It appeared that some operators would focus on opening the network to devices (Verizon Wireless), while others will likely focus more on applications (Sprint and T-Mobile). AT&T Wireless did not participate in this panel, but was represented in a Mobile Web 2.0 session.
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Definitions:

"Open Networks" is the ability to run an application on all mobile networks (from different providers) without any modification to the software resident in the client device. This is the rationale for the Android platform and Open Mobile Alliance.

There’s also the concept of "Open Applications," which is the ability to publish your application or service without interference from anyone, including the wireless network operator. Example: Google Android (vs. control by Apple over the Apple Store).
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Sprint Nextel

CEO Dan Hesse’s vision of open echoed what Kevin Packingham, Sprint’s Sr. Vice President previously said. Sprint believes that customers want the same accessibility to the Internet from their mobile device that they get from their notebook or desktop PC. But to date, wireless network operators have offered customers their own approved applications running on devices they sell and control. Yet customers ultimately want a choice. Sprint is working hard to help customers get easier access to the mobile Web through personalization and customization.

T-Mobile’s

strategy is a bit less clear. During the keynote, CEO Robert Dotson talked about how important it is to have open devices and open applications. He touted the fact that the company uses GSM-based technology so many consumers can already use third-party devices on the T-Mobile network by putting a T-Mobile SIM card in the device. He also expounded how the carrier hopes to "unleash innovation" through its new developer program and the importance of supporting open source operating systems.

Verizon Wireless

is initially focusing on opening its network to devices. While applications are a big part of the open equation and will likely result in big business for the operator, Verizon believes the key is to first act as a catalyst for the device makers by making it easier for them to get their devices certified and operating on the network. To understand Verizon’s strategy, one needs to broaden the concept of a mobile "device" to think beyond handsets and PC cards. Thermostats, heating and cooling, home appliances, medical devices, airline sensors are all new potential wireless network devices. "Start thinking what it would be like if every thermostat was connected to the network," said Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam. "What if the airline industry put sensors on engines in aircraft to predict failures before they happen? This will impact the way people live and manage their lives."

Sue Marek of Fierce Wireless interviewed Verizon Wireless’ Vice President of Open Development Anthony Lewis, who is charged with developing Verizon’s "open device and application" initiative.  Lewis talked about Verizon’s progress on open networks and why this wireless carrier’s approach is different from its competitors.  Please see:
http://www.fiercewireless.com/ctialive/story/hot-seat-verizons-anthony-lewis/2008-09-17

Conclusions

It seems that operators are finally talking about open networks and open applications. But is it just talk or are they really going to make it happen?  For sure, there is a lot more work to be done to turn the theories and visions into reality.  It would be nice if U.S. wireless networks would become as open as European GSM networks are today.  If it does happen, a much bigger market for wireless data (=non-voice) applications would emerge.  That would surely result in more innovation for developers and more choice for users.  A likely outcome then would be for mobile applications and services to eventually dominate the wireless operator revenue stream, with all participants sharing the revenue in an equitable manner.

References

For CTIA session video clips and photos, please visit:

http://daily.ctia.org/wirelessit08/

For a roundup of SPRINT’s views on open networks, please see:

http://sprintconnection.kansascity.com/?q=node/795

In an opposing point of view:  Skype official calls out carriers on "open" networks

In a strongly-worded letter to the FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, a Skype official complained that the major U.S. wireless carriers were all talk when it came to "open" networks, and that if the Commission wanted to live up to its stated goal of making open networks more accessible, it would affirm that this policy covers wireless networks.

http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/skype-exec-calls-out-carriers-open-networks/2008-09-16?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal&cmp-id=EMC-NL-FW&dest=FW

Popularity: 14% [?]

The Wisconsin State Telephone Association is providing ViodiTV Sponsorship Opportunities at the Oct 13-14, 2008 Fall Conference in Stevens Point. The sponsorships includes:

1. Pre-roll sponsor ad in a ViodiTV posted highlights video of the Fall Conference,
2. A sponsor highlight video from the conference to be posted on ViodiTV, AND
3. Weblink note in the post show WSTA Bulletin.

Check the links below for registration details, or contact Chris Nachreiner at the WSTA office 608-256-8866 ext 21 for more information.

• Apply on-line
• PDF Form
• Full Details - PDF

Popularity: 8% [?]

Register to attend the Oct 20, 2008 Viodi Local Content Workshop in Edina, MN from 1:00pm to 5:30pm. Oct 20th is the afternoon before OPASTCO’s Technical and Marketing Symposium, and the workshop is just a few miles east.

The Workshop is a half day event that will cover topics including:

1. Production methods - video editing, camera, lighting, audio, etc.
2. Production hardware - camera, light, microphones
3. What other telco’s are doing, and
4. Inspire Marketing on Marketing.

It is being held in the Harry Cooper Room at the Braemar Golf Course in Edina, Minnesota. Come early if the weather is good; The course should be open. Margaret Hines will be a special guest at the workshop, to speak on marketing, and it sounds like she is up for golf.

Monday Oct 20th, 2008 from 1:00pm to 5:30pm.

Popularity: 14% [?]

The announcement of Ericsson as a middleware provider is interesting, as their solution supports Internet Multimedia Subsystem and is from a player that is big enough to make a difference in this space, especially as it relates to delivering video across multiple devices. This approach promises increased blurring between applications (e.g. caller ID on TV, control of TV via mobile devices, etc.). This offering may have the big carriers rethinking their previous IPTV strategies.  Click here to read Lightreading’s take.    

Popularity: 16% [?]

September 25th Update:  Carrier Ethernet Thunder from Light Reading + PBT based Backhaul in SPRINT’s Xohm

Undoubtedly, this piece is intended to promote Light Reading’s Ethernet Expo next month in NYC.  However, it has some useful market share numbers from the leading vendors, e.g. Cisco’s share has dropped to below 50%, while Alcatel-Lucent is in 2nd place.  Light Reading claims "there has been a thundering of CESR-related product and feature news in recent months."  Judge for yourself:     

http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=164629

Provider backbone transport (PBT, also call provider backbone bridging, or PBB) will be used for backhaul in Sprint’s new Xohm WiMAX network. Sprint is using gear from Ciena (and Clearwire is, too, according to Unstrung).  In this scenario, the WiMAX MAC frame is enveloped in a PBT frame and transported over fiber optic cable. 

September 18th Update:  Nortel to divest Metro Ethernet Unit

Original Article:

A recent Viodi TV video on Carrier Ethernet for rural markets (see bottom of this article for Abstract and link) , stimulated me to share thoughts about that long hyped technology, which has seen more action on standards, articles and conference papers then actual deployment. 

The following report is taken from two posts to the IEEE ComSoc SCV Discussion mail list which I combined and edited for Viodi View readers.

Our take:   In a post several months ago, we opined that despite a plethora of standards for Carrier Ethernet and over 8 years of vendor effort to get it going, the technology was still in search of a mass market.   We identified last mile distribution for IPTV and fiber access VPNs for large business customers. Well, that may be changing with more and more carriers interested in expanding their Carrier Ethernet service to small and medium business customers. In addition, we see an important role for Carrier Ethernet in 2G/3G copper based backhaul (mid-band Ethernet) and in fiber based backhaul (Optical Ethernet).

We recommend reading the Telecommunications article (below) for a realistic assessment of the Carrier Ethernet market.  There are still way too many chearleaders out there, even after so many startups in this space have gone belly up. Opinion:  We still think that the main use of Ethernet in the MAN/WAN will be: for IP VPN access,  to deliver IPTV services to residential customers, and for backhaul of 3G/4G and possibly WiMAX networks (as Ethernet over Microwave Radio or Fiber).    

In addition to the market information provided in the articles below we note that ITU-T SG13 Question 11 is wrestling whether or not to define a lower rate (ODU0) to carry 1 Gig E and 2 Gig E over the OTN (a DWDM based optical network).  They have a late September meeting in Korea, where they will hopefully decide.  One of our members participates in that committee and we will report back in early October with results. 

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Here’s a summary and links to recent Carrier Ethernet articles of interest to Viodi View readers:

The Rural Telco Play: Carrier Ethernet Fills Wide-Open Spaces

A  study that was disclosed at the OPASCO show reported that rural telcos’ traditional revenue will diminish by 5 percent this year, 9 percent next year and 13 percent the following year — and that federal and state subsidies, including the Universal Service Fund, will not support the revenue shortfall. As a result, rural carriers will have to take quick action to launch new revenue-generating services such as Ethernet.

The benefits of Carrier Ethernet are not lost on the rural telco community. Indeed, among Nortel Networks’ 40 Carrier Ethernet customers are Dakota Carrier Network, Frontier, Golden West Telecommunications and Panhandle Telephone Cooperative Inc.   Increasing bandwidth demands are being driven by a variety of both residential and business applications, including IPTV, video on demand, Internet access, Ethernet services and 3G/4G wireless, noted Mike Loomis, director of Carrier Ethernet technical sales at Nortel

http://www.xchangemag.com/articles/rural-telcos-embrace-carrier-ethernet.html
 

Carrier Ethernet services: strategy for success Service providers need a plan that balances their strengths and weaknesses
 
by Doug Allen  Telecommunications Magazine, August 12, 2008       Conventional wisdom says carrier Ethernet services are the next Big Thing in telecom, and service providers are moving accordingly, from the Tier 1 carriers to alternative CLECs. Consider Verizon Business, along with AT&T one of the top national carriers, which claims Ethernet service revenues grew by more than 100% in 2007 over the previous year, even though Ethernet is only a small portion of the carrier’s overall data services portfolio. To read more, go to:

http://www.telecommagazine.com/newsglobe/article.asp?HH_ID=AR_4370

Business Ethernet shows gains

Fueled largely by demand from AT&T and Verizon Communications customers, the number of Business Ethernet services rose 16% in the first half of the year, according to Vertical Systems Group’s latest market analysis. "Most providers steadily increased their port deployments, spurred by new Ethernet service offerings and migration of larger customer networks," said Rick Malone, principal at Vertical Systems Group. xchange (9/5)

XO Enhances Ethernet infrastructure to deliver new speeds and extended reach

XO Communications has rolled out new Ethernet speeds in several of its markets, which now have access to 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 200, 300, 400 or 500 Mbps at on-net fiber locations. Chicago; Dallas; Los Angeles; Minneapolis; New York; San Jose, Calif.; Seattle; Philadelphia; and Washington are the first markets to gain access to the higher speeds, although additional markets are set to follow. To read more, go to:

http://www.xchangemag.com/articles/526/xo-bolsters-ethernet-speeds.html

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/xo-communications-enhances-ethernet-infrastructure/story.aspx?guid=%7B0CCF873B-C9D6-46FD-AF4A-95049F590575%7D&dist=hppr

Light Reading: Ethernet Services Revenue Still Growing Strong
The latest news from key players suggests that the market is still going strong, although the law of large numbers is beginning to make growth look more modest than the 25 percent to 100 percent rates characteristic of 2005-2007.  To read more….

http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=161630 

NXTcomm: Carrier Ethernet heats ups at NXTcomm Trade Show in Las Vegas

There have been a number of product announcements and advancements offered by Tellabs, Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson, Ixia, Soapstone Networks, Extreme Networks, Fujitsu, Foundry Networks, Actelis and others. While this week’s announcements address a variety of market trends, it might be safe to say that increasingly apparent needs for bigger and better mobile backhaul options are fueling some of the activity, while the emergence of a complex multi-carrier, multi-network Ethernet environment also factoring into the innovations.

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/061708-nxtcomm-carrier-ethernet.html

Foundry Unveils Carrier Ethernet Switches

Foundry Networks unleashed a series of Carrier Ethernet edge/aggregation switches designed to scale Ethernet services while reducing the burden on MPLS routers. Foundry is unveiling six 1RU Carrier Ethernet switches under the NetIron CES 2000 brand. The switches feature 24- or 48-port gigabit Ethernet copper or fiber interfaces with optional dual 10 Gigabit Ethernet uplinks. The switches support the IEEE 802.1ad Provider Bridge (PB) and 802.1ah Provider Backbone Bridging (PBB) standards for scaling multipoint Ethernet services by hiding media access control (MAC) addresses.
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/082608-foundry-carrier-ethernet-switches.html?hpg1=bn

Nortel Continues to Build Customer Base for Carrier Ethernet Portfolio

With over 40 customers around the world acquired within the last 12 months, a vendor ecosystem of more than 25 members and a growing product portfolio, Nortel is demonstrating how its innovative technologies have defined Carrier Ethernet as a viable, cost-effective metro infrastructure.   Among Nortel’s 40 customers are U.S. service providers Panhandle Telephone Cooperative, Golden West Telecom, Frontier and Dakota Carrier Network as well as KPN in the Netherlands, China Netcom, Australia’s Silk Telecom and Promigas Telecomunicaciones in Colombia. http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/marketwire/0407582.htm

Comment:  What are the Tier 1 network operators doing?  For years, Verizon has quietly deployed Private Line Ethernet and Ethernet Transparent LAN.  What else is going on in the tier 1 carrier space?

Carrier Ethernet Growing Faster and Smarter

Standards bodies are working toward specifications for both Ethernet and optical networks that would run at 100G bps, which for Ethernet would represent the next speed hop in a streak that has come all the way from Gigabit Ethernet in about a decade. Another standard in the works will cover 40G bps Ethernet. But even the standards, not expected until 2010, won’t do the job by themselves.  On June 16th, the "Road to 100G Alliance" formed a technical committee to fill in gaps in interoperability among various Ethernet and optical technologies that are under development for 100G-bps (bit-per-second) networks, spanning from enterprises to carrier backbones.  http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/147158/carrier_ethernet_growing_faster_and_smarter.html

Carrier Ethernet Vendor Ethos Makes US Debut

The four-year-old company made generally available its portfolio, which includes two Carrier Ethernet transport switches, which employ PBB-TE technology, and a management system that allows service providers to monitor and optimize their networks, said company co-founder Adam Dunsky.   Note:  PBB= IEEE 802.1ah Provider Backbone Bridging http://www.xchangemag.com/hotnews/nxtcomm-carrier-ethernet-ethos-us-debut.html

Perspective from an IEEE ComSoc member who works for a vendor supplying Carrier Ethernet gear as well as other WAN transport equipment:

"From what I’ve seen, Ethernet is being mapped into SONET/SDH or OTN at all segments of the (wide area) network, with the possible exception of the access networks.  Even in access networks there are deployments of Ethernet mapped via GFP over PDH (DS1s and DS3s) for bundled connections.  As far as I know those types of deployments are all book ended (same vendor on each end of a link), though there is a standard for it (G.8040)."

Comment:  Carrier Ethernet is defined as the transparent of Ethernet MAC and PHY frames over a "carrier class" network.  That means robust, reliable, high performance.  While Ethernet OAM was developed by the IEEE 802.3, 802.1, and ITU-T standards committees, many feel that the associated cost and complexity diminishes the attractiveness of Ethernet in the carrier network.  Some say, that the cost and simplicity advantages are negated when you add OAM, Performance Monitoring, and Protection Switching to Ethernet.  So with that said, the key issue is when and where Carrier Ethernet terminates and Ethernet over SONET/SDH or the OTN originates.  As I previously mentioned, the now mostly extinct MSPP (God box) vendors thought that demarcation point was in the basement of a building (business tenants).  Others felt it was at the 1st POP with either fiber or copper Ethernet access including OAM. Where is it now?  What do Juniper and Cisco think about Carrier Ethernet vs Ethernet over Optical Transport networks?  What’s your opinion?

Viodi Video:  Carrier Ethernet for Rural Markets

In this interview Michael Loomis of Nortel Networks and Gary Bolton of Hatteras Networks explain the applicability of Carrier Ethernet to rural markets, using both existing copper and/or new fiber infrastructure. This allows carriers to provide services to rural areas that are comparable to what can be found in urban area. Michael Loomis points out how rural carriers are closer to their subscribers and are much faster to move to solutions than larger entities.

http://www.viodi.tv/2008/08/24/carrier-ethernet-in-the-rural-markets/ 

Popularity: 18% [?]