Industry comment
In the rapidly evolving telecoms environment, all players must be prepared for the challenges brought by constant change. Our consultants offer an expert perspective on the issues that confront the telecoms industry.
Open for all: designing successful open access ultra-fast broadband networks
October 13, 2009
A common theme associated with state-funded plans for national broadband infrastructure around the world is that of providing “open access”. This ensures that customers have as wide a choice as possible of services and service providers on the new network. Governments and regulators have taken a range of open access approaches, from mandating full access for service providers to physical cables (layer 1) through to access network operators being required to supply managed data services at layer 2 and above.
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The cost of telecoms regulation: is it too much to pay?
October 1, 2009
To ensure that the often-cited benefits of telecommunications liberalisation can be realised – lower prices, improved access, a key driver of economic, social and national development – in most countries worldwide some degree of telecommunications regulation has been implemented. In those that have only recently introduced regulation, and smaller developing countries in particular, the urgency for the desired outcomes of telecommunications often overshadows the effort and costs required to achieve those goals.
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IPTV success: spotlight on the stars
June 9, 2009
France has been one of the dominant forces in the global IPTV market. According to the French telecoms regulator, ARCEP, 37% of xDSL subscribers were able to access IPTV as at the end of 2008, either through subscriptions or via the triple-play bundles that are a feature of the French broadband market. The audience measurement company Mediametrie claimed that IPTV overtook cable TV in terms of subscribers in mid-2008.
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Will VDSL2 be enough for an ultra fast broadband network?
February 17, 2009
The telecommunications industry and major broadband users wait with baited breath for the New Zealand government’s NZD1.5 million broadband decision. Will Telecom New Zealand’s recent VDSL2 announcement help?
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Micro-trenching: can it cut the cost of fibre to the home?
December 9, 2008
Government funding of fibre to the home (FTTH) networks is one of the key issues exercising the creative thinking of telecommunications carriers around the world. Naturally, the public insists that government money is spent wisely, so cost-effective solutions must be used for publicly funded fibre roll-out.
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Fibre to the home: who’s doing it, how and why?
November 18, 2008
From the FTTH Council’s global rankings for FTTH penetration we can gain some insights into the thorny question of how to achieve fibre rollout in the face of a difficult cost versus revenue equation. South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan are the leaders in Fibre to the Building deployment with their dense urban dwellings assisting the economic case via demographic and geographic patterns. The leaders in straight FTTH deployment are Japan, Sweden, Norway, Slovenia, Iceland and Denmark where in most cases geography is less useful for the cause. So what makes the economic case workable in these countries and who are the prime movers?
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Bang for buck: what you can get for your broadband dollar
October 14, 2008
For most consumers, choosing a broadband plan is an exercise in identifying the “best” service for a given budget. While the headlines tend to focus on the downlink bandwidth – faster is better – the consumer’s purchase decision is more complex as it involves prioritising various criteria, based on individual requirements and budget.
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The decline of fixed lines: implications for universal service
May 14, 2008
Over the past few years, operators in mature markets have been reporting falls in the number of fixed line services. According to Eurostat, fixed lines in Europe peaked in 2001 and have been declining ever since.
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The US 700MHz auction: truckloads of cash, but…
April 15, 2008
With the recently concluded US 700MHz auction raising USD19.1 billion – almost double the reserve price of USD10 billion – national administrators must be wondering what level of revenues could be achieved in their own markets.
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Privacy in an Information Society: issues from the Facebook experience
February 27, 2008
In recent weeks the social network, Facebook, has been widely criticised for the difficulties experienced by its users wishing to end their association with the site, and seeking to delete their accounts and all of their content. However, in Facebook’s November 2007 Terms of Use, to which members would have agreed in order to complete the registration process, it is clearly stated that although “you may remove your User Content from the Site at any time”, “you acknowledge that the Company may retain archived copies of your User Content”.
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