[LINK] The need for speed
Sylvano
sylvano at gnomon.com.au
Tue Mar 24 22:18:35 AEDT 2009
Some news items I have noticed recently while
browsing the news on the topic of broadband.
The promises, expectations and realities
on the "need for speed" truly take on many
forms, and show that the challenge to deliver
using current tech levels universally is hard
enough.
In the UK, we have T-Mobile describing that
delivering speed to rural customers is tricky,
even for mobile carriers, (1). It is pointed
out that at present BT is only capable of
delivering up to 512KB to 99% of homes. Is this
one of those theoretical maximums?
And all the while the Digital Britain plan is to
have 2MB connections to all British homes by 2012.
(I assume this means 16Mbps). This may be achievable,
in part at least, if the claim in another news
story (2) is correct that the very same BT will
have 60Mbps to 40% of UK premises by 2012. This is
four times the goal for speed, but to less than half
of all homes. And T-Mobile have already made the point
that it ain't going to be easy to service remote and
less densely populated areas.
On the home shores, we can read about the blistering
21Mbps mobile broadband offer from Telstra (3), but
acknowledge the advice from Telstra officials that
you are really talking about a typical operating
range of 550 kbps and 8 Mbps. What did BT promise again?
And you get the sense that the 8 Mbps is a very carefully
selected point along the axis of of a heavily left skewed
distribution. My iPhone on Vodafone 3G in Sydney metro,
which gives a typical range of 500kbps to 1Mbps,
ain't so bad then... for at least some of the time... ;-)
In the US of A, I read about Omaha, a rural town that
finally attracted a provider of broadband to service
their area, after years of effort(4). The company
set up a dial-up friendly web page to build up a
profile to help their corporate efforts to get some of the
few billions of dollars the federal government is
giving to companies to provide broadband to underserviced
areas. The mention of fire department and municipal
employees in the Omaha story would appear to be an
important thing when you read about the grants program (5).
The company has "helped" many other towns in the USA.
Over in the EU, there is some hard core negotiation
going on about how the major carriers can "reduce risks"
to deliver ubiquitous broadband, which *seems* to equate
to the EU leaders saying it's OK for carriers to gouge
each for using each other's infrustructure (6).
And finally, a story about how some more US troops in Iraq and
Afghanistan now have mobile broadband access via a new satellite
based service, thanks to a US Army contract recently awarded (7) to
Inmarsat for it’s Broadband Global Area Network service (BGAN) (8)
and accessed via fairly environmentally rugged looking devices indeed.
The theoretical maximum speeds quoted and just under half a megabit
or so. I still think I prefer my iPhone 3G and the lack of enemy
combatants ;-)
Whoever and where ever we are, the need for speed is the same.
regards
Sylvano
--
Gnomon Publishing
http://www.gnomon.com.au/
--
---------------------------------------------------
(1) Rural areas are tricky for us too, says T-Mobile (UK)
---------------------------------------------------
http://mobile.broadbandgenie.co.uk/news/rural-areas-are-tricky-for-us-too-
says-t-mobile
or
http://tinyurl.com/cs6u46
<snippets>
T-Mobile warns that despite government hopes, providing
internet connections to rural areas is challenging even
for mobile broadband providers.
... plans for Digital Britain include a minimum 2MB
connection available to every home in the land by 2012.
... Britain still has some way to go to reach it -
with BT able to reach 99 per cent of homes but only up
to an even more pitiful 512KB.
</snippets>
---------------------------------------------------
(2) BT announces locations for 60Mbps broadband trials (UK)
---------------------------------------------------
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/mar/23/btgroup-broadband
<snippets>
The "fibre to the cabinet" (FTTC) technology takes hair-thin
optical fibre from the exchanges to the same street as the
connected homes, though the connection to the home itself
still uses standard copper lines. Normally, internet connections
are maintained by encoding the data and transmitting it in a
high-frequency signal. Higher frequencies can carry more data,
but lose power rapidly over distance. Because the distance from
the "cabinet", where the new fibre-optic system terminates, to the
home is so much shorter – measurable in metres rather than
kilometres – than the usual connection from the home to the
exchange, a higher-frequency signal can be used to carry
more data.
By 2012, the system should cover 10 million premises – or 40% of
UK homes and businesses.
</snippets>
---------------------------------------------------
(3) 21 Mbps wireless broadband modem heading for retail (AU)
---------------------------------------------------
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/24018/53/
<snippets>
The Turbo 21 modem was part of Telstra's announcement of
the world's first 21 Mbps mobile broadband service at the
GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona during February 2009.
While the nominal raw speed is 21 Mbps, Telstra officials
say users can typically expect speeds between 550 kbps and
8 Mbps.
</snippets>
---------------------------------------------------
(4) Rural Communities Know Their Broadband Needs Best (US)
---------------------------------------------------
http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/rural-communities-know-broadband-needs-best/
<snippets>
Residents of Omaha in southern Illinois wanted broadband
access for years but could not attract a provider to their
region. Two years later, the community views itself as a
shining example of a successful broadband deployment and
encourages other rural communities to take control of their
broadband needs.
Omaha got broadband in 2007 when rural provider RidgeviewTel
answered their calls. Within six months, RidgeviewTel mapped,
built out a network and had customers online. The network
continues to add subscribers, serving more than half of the
town's households, the fire department and municipal employees
at $29.95 per month.
RidgeviewTel's solution for Omaha includes front-office,
back-office and network operations and maintenance from the
ground up. The company has deployed 54 networks for communities
like Omaha since 2004 and recently launched a dial-up friendly
site, http://www.WeNeedBroadband.com/ and toll-free number,
866-992-WNBB (9622), to accelerate network deployments in
communities under-served by broadband access.
</snippets>
---------------------------------------------------
(5) Rural Communities Know Their Broadband Needs Best (US)
---------------------------------------------------
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandgrants/
<snippets>
The U.S. Congress has appropriated $4.7 billion to establish a
Broadband Technology Opportunities Program for awards to
eligible entities to develop and expand broadband services to
rural and underserved areas and improve access to broadband by
public safety agencies.
</snippets>
---------------------------------------------------
(6) EU leaders back risk-sharing in broadband (EU)
---------------------------------------------------
http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssTechMediaTelecomNews/idUSLK95395020090320
<snippets>
European Union leaders backed risk-sharing pacts among
operators on Friday to pay the 300 billion euros
($411 billion) needed to equip the bloc with high-speed
broadband networks.
</snippets>
---------------------------------------------------
(7) US Army engineers choose BGAN to build resilience
---------------------------------------------------
http://www.ts2.pl/en/News/1/100
<snippets>
BGAN is supporting US Army engineering operations and
helping boost the morale of troops serving in Iraq and
Afghanistan. Two new contracts awarded by the US Army
to Inmarsat partners demonstrate the range of applications
offered by the mobile broadband solution. The US Army Corps
of Engineers (USACE) is using BGAN for remote planning,
building and disaster recovery.
</snippets>
also see http://www.ts2.pl/pdf/bgan.pdf fr pictures of the
device and coverage maps, a brochure.
---------------------------------------------------
(8) Understanding BGAN Internet Speed and Cost?
---------------------------------------------------
http://www.outfittersatellite.com/bgan_meaningofspeed.htm
</snippets>
Internet speed is usually measured in "bits per second" or "bps".
BGAN offers background internet speeds (up to) 492 "kilobits per
second" (or 492 kbps), which is its maximum theoretical data rate.
A user with limited usage on a Standard Plan can expect to pay
$6.95/MB plus tax/USF, though the rate drops for higher volume
plans. A minimum 50 KB charge will apply to each 12 hour session,
so the cost of staying connected all the time is fairly small.
</snippets>
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