The new broadband technology will be commercially launched by the end of 2015 with carrier partner Chunghwa Telecom
Alcatel-Lucent and Taiwanese telecom operator Chunghwa Telecom announced a plan to launch the world’s first commercial deployment of G.fast ultra-broadband access technology, allowing the acceleration of “last mile” connectivity to deliver ultra-fast fiber broadband to households across Taiwan.
Chunghwa Telecom is conducting a nationwide roll-out of fiber-to-the-premises infrastructure to residential and business customers using a combination of fiber and copper technology. To accelerate the deployments, Chunghwa Telecom will deploy Alcatel-Lucent’s GPON and G.fast technologies.
Alcatel-Lucent has already trialed the G.fast technology with more than 30 operators worldwide. G.fast, in particular, allows service providers to provide ultra-broadband access to locations where fiber deployment is difficult, using the final length of copper infrastructure extending into premises to deliver ultra-high speeds. Additionally, G.fast eliminates the need to rewire entire buildings and homes.
The combination of fiber and G.fast will enable the Taiwanese telco to provide fast broadband to tens of thousands of homes in Taiwan within two years, and also meet the country’s National Communications Commission plan to improve fixed broadband access in hard-to-reach residential locations. Chunghwa Telecom will launch ultra-broadband services using G.fast to 8.4 million Taiwanese homes in the fourth quarter.
“With Alcatel-Lucent’s G.fast technology we will be well equipped to launch an ultra-high-speed network service toward the end of this year and offer our customers the highest broadband service experience, thereby solidifying our leadership in the fiber optics broadband service market ranging from 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps,” Chunghwa Telecom’s President Mu-Piao Shih said.
Australian regulator invites telcos to participate in 1800 MHz spectrum auction
In other APAC news, the Australian Communications and Media Authority has invited applications from interested telcos wishing to participate in the 1800 megahertz spectrum auction scheduled for November. The ACMA will auction spectrum in the coming months in markets throughout Australia in the 1725 MHz/1785 MHz and 1820 MHz/1880 MHz bands.
According to the regulator, the auction conditions prohibit any operator from acquiring more than 2×25 megahertz of the available spectrum in the auction, in a move to foster competition. The ACMA also said that the closing date for applications is Oct. 1.
