We had a pleasant and somewhat enlightening surprise last week, when we decided to take a quick trip up the M40. Why you might ask….well, the Fibre Optics Industries Association held their very first event – a seminar no less with a variety of presenters and with subjects ranging from asbestos awareness right the way through to the new Qualifications and Credit Framework.
Lest face it, it is a hard slog to get any event off the ground, but hats off to the FIA – they pulled it off and pity those that missed out on the opportunity to network, compare notes and to share in some very useful information – the coffee was good as well!
You can go to the FIA’s web site, by clicking here
Cable ISP Virgin Media has announced it will trial fibre broadband delivered via telegraph poles, with a view to extending its superfast network coverage to new areas.
Could this be a “nimbys” paradise?……
You know the sort of comments that will adorn the pages of local newspapers “Well already, the look of our High Street is a mess”….and “we don’t want cables in our backyard!”………and yet we all want a broadband service that has a higher capacity and that offers faster download speeds.
But Virgin is a canny operator and has a commercial imperative. Having identified over a million homes that could benefit from fibre via telegraph poles, my guess is that it will pull all the stops out and get planning permissions that it needs in order to offer the service at a commercially viable rate. Starting in deepest rural Berkshire, it won’t be long before Virgin Media is vying for your business – anyone for 100 megabits per second?
A footnote here – not widely reported but something that we insiders know about – BT has been quietly trying to do the same thing….but hey…….guess what….the existing poles carrying the PSTN network are simply not robust enough so a huge replacement programme will have to be undertaken – bet they wish they hadn’t made all those engineers redundant !
So is fibre another way of BT making big money?…..
In a recent interview with the Financial Times, CEO of BT Ian Livingston said that four million homes are expected to have access to super fast broadband by the end of next year, with the remaining six million homes covered by the fibre rollout connected by 2012.
What Ian hasn’t told you and we only found out through an internet news feed, was that you will have to pay for this service….a lot more!!!!!
And what BT is not telling us, as it is buried in the small print is that there are additional connection fees…….like it lump it….if you want faster broadband….you can have it provided you pay extra…….!!!!
As 2009 draws to a close, we woiuld like to offer out thanks to all of you that have chosen Total Communications Training to deliver your course over the last year and indeed, over the last decade.
Of course, we know that the last couple of years have been challenging for everyone, including us – we all hope that 2010 is succesful and profitable for all and we look forward to seeing clients and customers, both old and new very soon.
Harlow (where Total Communications Training is based) is in the news
Former Harlow scientist Charles K Kao is one of three recipients of this year’s physics Nobel prize.
Mr Kao worked for many years as an engineer at Standard Telephones and Cables in London Road, the company that is now Nortel Networks. He is credited with the 1960s breakthrough in fibre optic technology that allowed thin cables to transmit light over much longer distances than had previously been possible. His team improved the efficiency of the glass materials used to construct fibres and today, fibre optics are an essential of the communication age. The modern telephony system and high speed internet broadband are built on the technology.
Born in 1933 in China, Mr Kao lives in the UK and holds dual British/American citizenship. He graduated in electrical engineering from the University of Greenwich in London.
His work is credited on the town’s welcome signs and in 2008 the building which houses the new business enterprise centre in Edinburgh Way was named jointly in his honour.
Mr Kao receives half of the award. The other half is shared by Americans Willard Boyle and George Smith, recognised for their invention of the CCD light detector popularly used in digital cameras. The invention has also transformed scientific observation and detectors are now included in the imaging systems of all space missions – including recent robotic vehicle excursions on Mars. CCD is also used in the Hubble telescope
Welcome to our new comms blog – we hope you enjoy the comments and the occasional controversy!