XXXX XXXX PETER DYKES FTTHWRAP
FTTH COUNCIL EUROPE 2019
FTTx rollout is well under way in many European countries and those that have only just begun the journey are setting ambitious targets for full fibre connectivity. This was the background to this year’s FTTH Conference Europe, held in Amsterdam’s Rai Centre in March. Optical Connections’ editor Peter Dykes was there to take the temperature of the industry.
T his year’s Conference for broadband stakeholders. Visitors were able to meet top industry leaders and decision makers and get insights from leading experts on broadband and fibre technology, policy and finance. KEYNOTES Keynotes were delivered by some of the top professionals and policy makers in the industry and 10 workshops explored the latest fibre-related technological developments, including 5G, smart cities and connected homes, SDN, IoT and Artificial Intelligence. There were also C-level discussions on Fibre-5G Convergence, new investment trends and business models, with 155 speakers taking part. The opening keynote speech was given by Ronan Kelly, President of the FTTH and expo attracted more than 3000 participants from around 96 countries, making it the largest meeting place in the world
Mona Keijzer, the Netherlands’ State Secretary for Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, outlined her country’s strategy for full fibre rollout. Pointing out that The Netherlands was the first country to gain access to the internet in 1988, which until then had been the exclusive preserve of the military and the academia, she said the country had a reputation to live up to. She added, “The aim is to ensure that wherever you are in The Netherlands, you will have perfect connectivity.” She also said one of her main priorities was to prevent a digital divide in particular ensuring rural communities weren’t left behind. She explained that the government has developed a so-called
Council Europe. He outlined
the Council’s development strategy going forward, which encompassed three key focus areas. He said, “First,
Ronan Kelly
we have copper networks that we need to switch off. Second, we must remember that 1Gbps is not the endgame for gigabit societies. Third, that vision of 5G,” he warned, “will remain just that, only a vision, if we don’t take serious action and ramp up the massive fibre densification that’s going to be needed.” He added, “We need to be careful about continued investment in network infrastructures that are barely up to the task of gigabit societies’ needs, because continued investment in those infrastructures is only going to serve to delay Europe becoming a leader on the global stage of gigabit societies.” On a more regional level however,
broadband map which will show actual speeds from a country-wide perspective, down to single address
Mona Keijzer
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ISSUE 17 | Q2 2019
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