Synopsis
Archived report. Optical fibre development first started in the 1970s, with the first large-scale commercial use occurring in the late 1980s. By the 1990s fibre networks were beginning to be taken seriously and in the early 2000s a few daring telcos in the United States and Asia started Fibre-to-the Node (FttN) projects, but in most situations the last few metres were stilled planned to be twisted-copper pair.
The dramatic reduction in the cost of fibre deployment in recent years made the technology cost-effective compared to xDSL and cable alternatives, both of which provide only a fraction of the speed of FttH networks. The cost balance is beginning to favour fibre and improved technologies and deployment methods; as well as regulatory measures which encourage or enforce shared access has allowed fibre to become a viable broadband infrastructure.
BuddeComm has been following and advising upon broadband development for many years. The following report is an historical backgrounder on some of the issues surrounding fibre deployment and includes some our key analyses written on this topic which is still relevant. It explores such as issues as regulating fibre; drivers or fibre access and broad FttH business models.
Key developments:
The challenge for carriers is managing this totally new infrastructure; Countries with effective and strong regulatory policies are forging ahead with a lively fibre footprint. When regulators get the issue between their teeth and act; the fibre sector moves ahead because operators are no longer put off by regulatory uncertainty.
