Page 41 - PCCA Journal 2nd Quarter 2012

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PCCA Journal|2
nd
Quarter 2012
41
now represent 3 percent of FTTH on the
continent, and the remaining 2 percent
are in Mexico and the Caribbean.
  While Verizon continues to be by
far the largest FTTH provider on the
continent, the number of FTTH network
operators in North America is nearing
1,000, as an increasing number of small
and medium-sized incumbent telephone
companies, most located in rural and
small town areas, swap out their copper
plant with fiber so they can offer faster
internet speeds and a video service to
stay competitive and bring next-genera-
tion connectivity to their communities.
Also building FTTH networks are a
variety of competitive broadband compa-
nies, municipalities, and public electric
utilities. The vast majority of FTTH net-
work operators serve fewer than 10,000
subscribers.
“The pure numbers of FTTH provid-
ers and their diversity is something that
is uniquely North American. No other
region of the world is seeing this,” said
RVA President Michael Render.
In a recent RVA survey, 58 percent of
FTTH providers reported seeing in-
creased local economic activity related
to the availability of more robust all-fiber
networks they have deployed.
“The notion that the upgrade to FTTH
can be a catalyst for economic develop-
ment is precisely what is driving this
enormous interest in high-speed fiber we
are seeing at the community level across
North America,” said Heather Burnett
Gold, president of the FTTH Council
Americas. “Civic leaders in communi-
ties of all sizes have a sense that more
bandwidth means more opportunities for
economic progress.”
“These latest numbers underscore that
phenomenon in two ways—they show
that smaller telecoms are continuing to
upgrade to FTTH and that many are in-
deed seeing a positive economic impact
in their communities after they deploy,”
she added.
The RVA survey also found that, on
average, government supported FTTH
stimulus projects are now 38 percent
complete, with indications that many
will start connecting subscribers this
year. Environmental reviews and heavy
demand for fiber optic cable were cited
as reasons for the delays.
The survey found growing activity
among FTTH providers in fiber to the
cell tower construction, with more than
1,500 towers connected by small, single-
state providers in 2011.
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