Fiber networks require a public-private partnership approach to be economically viable
ORLANDO–Smart buildings turning urban cores into smart cities filled with autonomous cars and drones, and ubiquitous, high seed, low latency networks supporting the needs of consumers, enterprises and the seemingly endless growth of the internet of things. That’s the vision for the future of 5G and wireless, but all of it depends on wires–coaxial cable, Ethernet, and most importantly of all, fiber.
ZenFi Networks is a dark fiber provider that exclusively serves the New York City area. “The wholesaler to the wholesaler,” as Walter Cannon, company vice president of sales and marketing, explained in an interview with RCR Wireless News during the annual Wireless Infrastructure Show.
Cannon said, since the company was formed in 2014, ZenFi has deployed more than 200 miles of fiber optic cable with plans and funding to continue expanding the footprint with a focus on integration with colocation facilities–base station hotels–and data centers in the five boroughs and New Jersey. And the existing network, right now, has capacity utilization of less than 20%, he said.
ZenFi’s approach revolves around deploying fiber that, in addition to excess capacity, is equipped with a high volume of easily-accessible splice points.
“By creating this dense, accessible network,” Cannon said, “I don’t have to run 3,000 feet to find a splice point. If you think about the cost, people don’t realize the cost of construction and labor in any metropolitan area, not just New York City.” He said the going rate for fiber deployments is between $25- and $50-per-foot, which doesn’t include ancillary costs such as ripping up streets, repaving, incorporating power supply and the like.
“The closer I can bring that splice point and more accessible I can make our cable, the better I can take costs out of the model.”
As to costs, in New York City and many other jurisdictions, city leaders govern fiber and other types of networks with franchise agreements that come with recurring fees, which, like most things, increase in cost over time. Cannon says that approach could stymie investment by eating into providers’ margins.
“I don’t think the public, any government, understands the amount of work and cost it takes to do. I don’t think any of the officials truly understand how much funding is really needed. I think they might appreciate it, but no one understands the time, energy and cost it takes to make all this work. I has to be done as a public-private partnership.”
