By all indications, broadband users are ready for higher quality services for information, communications and entertainment. Bo Ribbing, strategic marketing director at Ericsson, says fiber solutions will deliver a step change in access speeds and drive uptake of fixed and mobile broadband services. 

“People are ready and willing to do more over their high-speed connections, so the challenge is to deploy networks that meet the rising user expectations,” Ribbing says. “Fiber access solutions such as GPON in combination with VDSL2 will expand the way people use broadband, in a similar way that HSPA changed how people use 3G networks.”

Broadband services have proved successful at creating new revenue streams for operators. Ribbing says that in order to take broadband to the next level, operators need a network architecture that delivers access to interactive, personalized services on any device, including mobile phones, portable media players and games consoles, desktop and laptop computers, and widescreen HDTV sets.

He says that Ericsson Full Service Broadband architecture is a unique collection of technology components and associated services designed to deliver ubiquitous broadband connectivity and compelling experiences for people and enterprises. Full Service Broadband architecture provides critical components for scalable IP networks covering device ecosystems, broadband access, transport, control, applications, charging, services and operations management.

Deep fiber deployment can save an operator as much as 60 percent in operating costs compared to legacy copper networks, which reduces the overall cost-per-bit significantly. “Deep fiber access also provides operators with a simplified, flexible and reliable network that delivers predictable, secure and guaranteed quality of service,” Ribbing says.

He adds that virtually unlimited capacity and adherence to open standards and industry standard interfaces make fiber access solutions future proof, which is critical not only for the operator’s business but for keeping up with user expectations. The increasing use of high-speed applications in the fixed environment will drive a parallel growth in usage on the mobile side, Ribbing notes. “When people become accustomed to using these bandwidth-hungry applications, they'll want to take them everywhere they go.”

High-performance broadband also appeals to environmentally-conscious consumers and enterprises that increasingly place a premium on sustainable practices. “Fiber access networks can deliver the speeds to support videoconferencing, working from home and virtual meetings,” Ribbing says, “thereby reducing the need for travel or maintaining permanent office workspace.”