Fibre Broadband Jumping Hurdles

Huge advances in fibre optic technology are propelling the distribution of data into an ever faster future. Fibre is being pushed closer to its physical limits and the impressive statistics match the keen interest of customers in seeking faster connections. [caption id="attachment_135" align="alignleft" width="75"] Paul Heritage-Redpath, Product Manager[/caption] Aldous Huxley, whose books so often accurately predicted the future, said: “Speed, it seems to me, provides the one genuinely modern pleasure”. His comment would appear to ring true for a rapidly increasing number of people. The recent revelations from BT’s and Alcatel-Lucent’s field trial of new Flexgrid technology for pushing both every day and specialist fibre connections toward their limits potentially breathes new life into more vivid predictions of the future of broadband. The trial is reported to have achieved a stunning 1.4 Terabits per second speed on “commercial grade” fibre optic links from BT Tower in London to BT's Adastral Park in Ipswich. Elsewhere, teams have achieved incredible speeds of over 70 Terabits per second on advanced, non-standard connections. The expanding fibre broadband market is being driven not only by carriers’ rollout plans and Government funding but by increasing hunger among customers for superior connection speeds and greater reliability. The release of the OECD’s (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) annual global report revealed that, although connections are still predominantly copper DSL: “…it continues to be gradually replaced by fibre optic links (note: they define this as FTTP (the home or business) or LAN connections), now at 15.75% of subscriptions (7.19% in the UK). (Source: ISPreview)” The report puts Britain third among the fastest growing countries that are experiencing an increase in fibre subscriptions, with an annual growth of over 150%. It’s increasingly clear that the future of broadband is aimed squarely at fibre becoming the new standard connection over copper DSL. The potential to push speeds further than ever before is too appealing to overlook and the evidence of this is constantly gathering. Have your say! What do you think is the future of broadband? Do you think we will ever see 1.4 Terabits per second in our homes or businesses? We’d like to know your thoughts, so why not leave us a comment below? For Further Information ISPreview.co.uk: BT and Alcatel-Lucent Claim Fastest Real World Fibre Optic Speed of 1.4Tbps ISPreview.co.uk: OECD Report Big Improvement in UK Fibre Optic Broadband Growth [cookiecontrol1] [subscribe2]