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TRANSCRIPT
Contents
• Introduction• Whatisfibretothecabinetbroadband?• Flexibility• VoIPandcloudtechnology• Businesscontinuityanddisasterrecovery• Future-proofing• Conclusion
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SpeakingatSiliconRoundabouton20thAugust2012,Culture,MediaandSportSecretaryJeremyHuntsetchallengingbroadbandtargetsfortheUKusingFTTCtechnology.
Hesaidthat:“To really be the best you need to be the fastest. I am today announcing an ambition to be not just the best overall, but specifically the fastest broadband of any major European country by 2015.
“Getting the plumbing right for our digital economy is not just an advantage to consumers – it is also essential for our digital and creative industries, all of whom need reliable high-speed networks to develop and export their products as they move large digital files around the world.”
HeaddedthatthegovernmentwasbackingFTTC“becauseitwouldallowabigenoughriseinspeedtocreateEurope’sbiggestandmostprofitablehigh-speedbroadbandmarket,creatingtheclimateforfurtherfibreinvestment.”Hesaidthatfibrewouldbeavailableon-demandtomorethantwo-thirdsofthepopulationby2016.
Fibrebroadbandisanewtypeofbroadbandthatisbeingintroducedusingfibreopticcablestoincreasethespeedofbroadbandconnectionsforbusinessandthehome.Fibreopticcablesaremadefromglassandplasticasopposedtotraditionalcoppercables.Thesystemworksthoughconversionofinformationintolightpulseswhicharetransmittedatveryhighspeedsthroughtheindividualstrandsmakingupthefibreopticcable.
Termssuchas‘super-fastbroadband’or‘next-generationbroadband’stressthefactthatfibrebroadbandprovidessignificantlyspeedierconnectionsthanhaveeverbeenavailablepreviously.Currentlytwotypesoffibrebroadbandconnectionscanbeinstalled:
Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC)Fibreopticcablesaretakenfromtelephoneexchangesordistributionpointstocabinetsinthestreetwhichcanthenbeconnectedtostandardphonelinestoprovidebroadbandservices.Coppercablesarethenusedfortheshortdistancesfromthecabinetstothebusinessorhome.FTTCgivesspeedsofupto80Mbdownload.
Introduction - Minister backs fibre optic to the cabinet (FTTC) broadband
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What is fibre to the cabinet broadband?
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Source: Ofcom/BT
UK
Engl
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Scot
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rela
nd
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on SE SW EM WM EE
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UK
Urb
an
UK
Rur
al
0
20
60
40
80
100
Proportion of households (per cent)
Mar - 11
Mar - 12
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Fibre to the Premises/Home (FTTP or FTTH)Thismethodutilisesanend-to-endconnection.Thefibreopticcablegoesfromthetelephoneexchangeordistributionpointdirectlytothebusinessorhome.FTTP/FTTHgivesspeedsofupto300Mb.
FTTC UK coverageRecentOFCOMstatisticsshowthatoverthelastyeartheUKhasseenanincreaseinthenumberofhomesabletoreceiveFTTCservicesfrom16%to31%.Thereisamarkeddifferencebetweenthefiguresforurbanandruralareas.Inurbanareasitis35%ofhomescomparedwith15%inruralones.ThehighestfiguresareforNorthernIrelandwhichshowstheremarkablyhighfigureof87%ofhomesasthedirectresultofaDepartmentofEnterprise,TradeandInvestment(DETI)specialinitiative.ItishopedthattheprogressmadeinNorthernIrelandcanberepeatedonmainlandUKusingtheGovernmentprovisionofBroadbandDeliveryUK(BDUK)funds.
Estimated proportion of households able to receive BT FTTC services
than average UK broadband
speeds
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8xFTTCinstallationwillofferdramaticincreasesinbroadbandspeeds.Forbusinessusersthiswillmeanadoublingofcurrent20Mbpackagestoupto40Mbresultinginfasterdownloadinganduploadingofinformation.Therefore,itwillbecomesignificantlyeasiertosharelargefilesandinternetcontentcanbeuploadedmuchmorequickly.
FTTCspeedsareupto80Mb.OFCOMhaspublishedaverageUKbroadbandspeedas9MbsoFTTCiseighttimesfaster.FTTCuploadspeedsareupto20Mb,whichis20timesfasterthanstandarduploadspeeds.
Thebenefitsoftheseimprovementsarethatproductivityisgreatlyincreased,aswithstaffgainingeasieraccesstobusinessdata,theyareabletoperformgeneraltasksmorequicklyandefficiently.Internetbrowsingisalsomuchfasterwhenusingafibreopticbroadbandconnection;thisisparticularlyusefulwithregardstovideostreaming,asmaterialcanviewedingreaterdefinitionandathigherspeeds.Thequalityandreliabilityofvideoconferencingwillalsobeenhanced,resultinginbetterpictureclarityandlessbreak-upsanddelaysduringconversations.Otherbusinessservices,suchasVoIPandcloudcomputing,willalsobenefitfromBritain’sfastestbroadband.
VirtualPrivateNetworks(VPNs)willalsobenefitfromgreaterbandwidth,enablingfilestobedownloadedanduploadedatagreaterspeed,makinghomeworkingbotheasierandmoresecure.Companiesthatprovidetheircustomerswithvirtualserviceswillgainmarketadvantagefromfasterbroadband.
Fibreopticsalsoofferthefacilitytoperformarangeofdifferentactivitiesatthesametime,whichboostsproductivity.Usersoffibreopticbroadbandcanbrowsetheinternet,aswellasdownloadinganduploadingfilesanddocumentssimultaneously.Fibreopticbroadbandenablespeopletoworkcollaborativelyandmaximisebusinessefficiencies.
faster
FTTC is
Business benefits
faster upload speeds with
FTTC
20x
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Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)
VoIPisatechnicaltermusedtodescribehowtelephonecallscanbemadeovertheInternetinsteadofusinglandlines.Overthelastfewyears,theusageofVoIPserviceshasincreaseddramatically.Thisisduetotherealsavingsthatcanbeachieved,whencomparedtonormallandlineservices.
AwiderangeofbusinessbenefitsflowfromVoIPdeliveredoverfibreopticnetworks,assignificantimprovementshavebeenmadetothespeedandqualityofvoicetransmitteddata.TheimplementationofopticalcableshasalsoresultedinmajorgainsintheclarityandqualityofVoIPtransmissions,particularlyforlongdistancecommunications.
Reducing the costs of callsOneofthemainreasonswhycompaniesopttochangetoVoIPsystemsisthattheyareabletosignificantlyreducethecostsoftheirmonthlyphonebills,asVoIPisamuchcheaperoptionthantraditionallandlinetechnology.
Savingsofbetween75%and80%canbeobtainedbyswitchingtoVoIPservices,duetomuchlowermaintenancechargesandcheapercallrates.VoIPtechnologyenableslowcostcallsasvoiceissentovertheinternetasdata,avoidingtheneedtousetraditionalvoicetelephoneexchanges,withthegreatestcostsavingscomingfromlongdistanceandoverseascalls.
CommunicationisobviouslyavitaltoolforeverybusinessandtheintroductionofVoIPtechnologyenablescompaniestoregularlycommunicatewithcustomers,partnersandsuppliersatalowcostandnothavetoworryaboutthelocationorthelengthofthecalls.
Increased portabilityPortabilityisyetanotheradvantageofusingVoIP,astheonlyrequirementforcommunicationisaninternetconnection,ratherthantraditionaltelephonesystemswhicharedependentuponaspecificphysicallocation.Thismeansmovingyourbusinesstopermitexpansionwillinvolvenoextracostwhereyourtelephonysystemisconcerned,becauseyoucanuseyourVoIPnumberswhereveryouare,providedyouhaveInternetaccess.PriortotheintroductionofVoIP,majorcostswouldhavebeenattachedtoofficemoves,astransferringthetelecommunicationsinfrastructurewouldhavebeenexpensiveandevenrequirethepurchaseofanentirelynewsystem.
Enhanced scalability Expandingyourbusinesscanbeacostlyprocess,asthiswouldhaveusuallynecessitatedtheexpansionofyourtelecommunicationssystemsbutwithVoIPallofthiscanbeavoided.VoIPprovidesyouwiththeabilitytocheaplyandsimplyincreasethenumberofphonenumbersyoucanuse,withnolimitoncapacity.
VoIPisthemostsuitableoptionforbusinessesthatoperateovermultiplelocationsandforthosewithhomeworkers,asitiscompletelyfreetomakecallsbetweenVoIPnumbers.
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Cloud computing
The main benefits of cloud computing
Cloudcomputingenablesawiderangeofdigitalassetssuchasemails,files,documents,businessapplicationsandcustomerdatatobeexternallystored“inthecloud”,whichmeansthatalltheseassetscanbeeasilyaccessedviaanycomputer,tabletorsmartphonewithinternetconnectivity.
Fibreopticsincreasesyourbandwidthandthespeedofyourinternetconnectionmakingcloudcomputingafastandefficientreality,enablingcompaniestostoreasubstantialproportionoftheirbusinessdataonline.
CloudcomputingcanbeinstalledasastandalonesolutionortosupplementyourexistingITsystems.Itwillaidyouinloweringthecostsofyourhardwareandsoftware,aswellasprovidingincreasedflexibilityintheworkplaceandscalabilityforyourITinfrastructure.Cloudcomputingisamorereliableandsecuremethodofbacking-upyourbusinessdataandhelpstolessenyourrelianceondedicatedin-houseITprovision.
Lowering your IT costsImplementingcloudcomputingcanenableyourbusinesstoloweritsspendingonITsupport,ashostingyourbusinessapplicationsontheinternetremovesanyneedforyoutosetupandinstallthatsoftwareonyourownsystem.
Similarlyyouwillhavereducedmaintenanceandupgradeneedsasthesewillbemoreeconomicallymanagedbythecloudserviceprovider.Youbenefitfromthecompetitiveratesthattheprovidercanofferresultingfromeconomiesofscaleinservicingmultipleusers.
Furtherknock-onbenefitsarethatyouwillbeabletodownsizeyourinternalITsupportfunction,givingyoucostsavingsandenablingyoutoconcentrateyourresourcesonmainstreamkeybusinessactivities.
Enhances scalabilityAsyourbusinessgrowscloudcomputinggivesyoutheopportunitytoincreaseyourITneedswheneveryourequireit.CloudcomputingallowsyourbusinesstoeasilyupscaleordownscaleyourITrequirementsasandwhenrequired.Significantcostsavingscancomefromthefactthattheproviderhastheabilitytoswiftlygiveyousoftwareupgradeswiththeminimumofeffortandexpensetoyouandyourbusiness.CriticallythereisnoneedforyoutocarryoutmodificationstoyourownITinfrastructure,againamajorpotentialsourceofsavings.Akeybenefitofbeinginstantlyscalableisthatyouonlypayforwhatyouuse.
New technologyCloudcomputingfreesyourbusinessfromtheneedtoresearchthemarkettoensurethatyoursystemsarefullyup-to-date.Adviceandsupportwillalwaysbeathand.Youwouldnolongerneedtoworryaboutthecapitalcostnormallyrequiredforyoutoupdateyoursoftware.Therewillnolongerbeanyneedtopurchasewhatcanbeveryexpensivesoftware,asthecloudprovidercansupplythistoyou.Allyouwillhavetopaygoingforwardisamaintenancecharge,againlikelytobehighlycompetitiveasyouoncemorebenefitfromthecheapratestheprovidercanofferthrougheconomiesofscale.Inaddition,thereisthemajorsavingresultingfromnothavingtoincurwhatcanbehugecapitalcostsinupgradinghardwaretokeepupwithtechnologywhichthengoesoutofdate.
Flexible workingYourbusinesswillbenefitfromtheflexibilitythatcloudservicesofferintheworkenvironment.Yourstaffwillbeabletoshareanextensiverangeofdataontheinternetwithcolleagues,customersandsuppliersusingsmartphones,tabletsorPCs,whicheverisappropriate.Inaddition,theywillbeabletocarryouttheseactivitieswhethertheyareonoroffsite.
Data backupProtectingdataisimportanttoeverybusinessandreliablebackupiscritical.Youcansafelybackupallyourdatainthecloudintheknowledgethatitwillbemanagedefficientlyandatalowcost.Youwillbeabletorelyonthefactthatshoulddatalossesoccuronyoursystemthesecanberetrievedefficientlyandquicklywiththeminimumofeffortonthepartofyourstaff.Thiswillresultinamajorreductioninpotentiallossesfrombusinessdowntime.
Keep your business greenYouwillalsobehelpingtosafeguardtheenvironmentthroughtheuseofcloudcomputingservices,asyouwillbeabletoloweryourownenergyuse.Atthesametime,thefactthatcloudservicesareprovidedfromcentralisedoperationalinstallationsmeansthattheiruseofenergyisfarmoreefficientthanindistributedsystems.Therearealsosignificantadvantagesinminimisingelectronicwastedisposalasyouwillhavelesshardwaretomanageanddealwithasitbecomesobsolescentovertime.Againthecloudprovideroperatingonalargerscalewillbeabletoputinplaceacost-efficientandeffectivelong-termplanformanageddisposalwhichwillassistinconservingresources.
Shoulddisasterstrike,businesscontinuityandspeedofdatarecoveryiscritical.Problemscanresultfromfire,flooding,powerbreakdownsandawholerangeofothersituationscausingdisruption.Fibreopticservicescanoffermajorassistancehere.Thisisprimarilyduetothebandwidththeyprovideandspeedwithwhichtheycantransmitdata.Thisprovidesbusinesseswiththeassurancethatthelargeamountsofdatarequiredtoruntheirbusinesscanbefullybackedupandeasilyaccessed.
Additionally,therearealsosignificantcostsavingsresultingfromthenewtechnology.Fibreopticsenablesmoothandfasttransferofdataatalowcostthroughtheinternettooff-sitebackupcentres.Useofthesecentresisacriticalcomponentofanydisasterrecoveryplan.Thelocationofthebackupcentreisamajordecisionforanybusiness.Differentbusinesseshavedifferentneedsdependingontheirsizeandprofile.However,anoverridingconsiderationisthatthebackupcentrelocationneedstobesufficientlyfarfromthebusinessbasetonotbeaffectedbytheparticulardisasterevent.Atthesametimeitneedstobelocatednearenoughtothebusinesstoenablestafftobeabletogettoitwithinamanageableperiodoftimeduringtheworkingday.
Business continuity and disaster recovery
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Oneofthemajorqualitiesattributedtofibreopticservicesisthatuniquelytheyarefuture-proof.Thismeansthatbecauseofthenatureofthetechnology,itdoesnothavecapacitylimitsrequiringperiodicincrease.Socapacityrestraintsaremorelikelytocomefromtheolderbusinessinfrastructureitissupporting.
InarecentarticleintheFinancialTimes,KarelHelsen,PresidentofindustrybodytheFibre-to-the-Home(FTTH)Council,wrote“TheintroductionoffibreopticbroadbandacrosstheUKcouldprovemoreefficientthanshort-termfixestoimproveconnectionspeeds.Opticalfibrehasvirtuallyunlimitedcapacitybothtoandfromtheuser,sobandwidthupgradesonlyrequirechangestotheequipmentontheendsofthelink.”Headded:“Buildthenetworkonce;enjoyitforthenext50yearsandbeyond–whysettleforanythingless?”
TheUKGovernmentshareshisview.AdamAfriyieMPChairmanoftheParliamentaryOfficeofScience&TechnologyandformerShadowMinisterforScienceandInnovation,saidthatfuture-prooffibreopticbroadbandservicesholdthekeytoensuringbusinessesintheUKcanremaincompetitiveonagloballevel.
TheHouseofLordsCommunicationsCommitteeintheirrecentreport‘Broadbandforall-analternativevision’recommendedasfollows:
“We argue that the Government should be focusing on delivering a high spec infrastructure which is future-proof and built to last; fibre optic cable, the most future-proof technology, must be driven out as close as possible to the eventual user. Then, as well as mandating open access to this optical fibre from the cabinet to the exchange, we need to ensure that there is open access to links between the exchanges that feed the cabinets, and to the higher level links into national and global networks.”
Future-proofing
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“...fibre optic broadbandservices hold the key toensuring businesses in the UK can remain competitive on a globallevel.”
Adam Afriyie, MP Chairman of the
Parliamentary Office of Science &
Technology
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Itisextremelyimportanttothefuturesuccessofyourbusinessthatyoudon’tgetleftbehindintheconnectivityrace.
TakingFTTCbroadbandconnectivityisonlythefirststeptowardsensuringyourtechnologyissupportingbusinessgrowthtargetsandcostsavingstrategies.
CompanieswithFTTCinplacecanthenreallystarttoexploitwhatthatimprovedconnectivitycandofortheirbusiness.
Conclusion