Tele2 to introduce VDSL2 in Netherlands

bealtine

Tele2 to introduce VDSL2 in Netherlands Friday 28 August 2009

Dutch operator Tele2 has presented its new VDSL2 product Fiberspeed together with the results of a study by Synovate looking at consumer internet use and needs. According to the operator, the results of the survey confirm its opinion that a full transformation of the local loop into a fibre network is not needed at this moment and that copper still satisfies the most basic uses. Fiberspeed will offer download speeds of up to 60 Mbps. Tele2 is targetting national coverage for the service, but will start first in September with the service in 85 exchanges in 40 cities and towns with a population of 200,000 homes. The aim is to reach 1 million households by the end of 2010. Due to the technical limitations of the VDSL technology, the new service has a potential reach of around 2 million homes, which the operator hopes to reach by end-2011. Tele2 will offer the internet service for EUR 39.95 per month, and internet and fixed-line voice for EUR 49.95. A triple-play offer with TV service will follow later.

Tele2 already operates a fibre network to the KPN central offices. From there to the subscriber, Tele2 will roll out VDSL on the local loop. The operator will install new new DSLAMs with VDSL2 cards, from Alcatel-Lucent. Customers must also have a new router installed, sourced from Comtrend. Tele2 will limit the marketing and availability of Fiberspeed to 2 million households using a post code check. Households must be no more than 1500 meters from the closest central office. Tele2 assumes that only within around 1,000 meters will the maximum speed of 60 Mbps download and 6 Mbps upload be possible. The company aims to offer always a minimum of 35 Mbps with the service.

The Synovate study was based on 500 online interviews with Dutch people aged 18 or older in week 34 of this year. The study shows 80 percent of respondents using internet daily, with 50 percent online for a minimum of two hours. About 70 percent of respondents have a minimum of two computers at home. Around 43 percent do not know what their bandwidth is for their internet connection, while 10 percent said they had a minimum of 50 Mbps. About 20 percent have less than 20 Mbps and 25 20-50 Mbps. Asked about available speeds, 76 percent said they were satisfied, while 19 percent wanted to consider alternatives. Of the 19 percent, 13 percent said they wanted to go to 20 Mbps, with 37 percent wishing to move to 50-100 Mbps and 20 percent to a minimum of 120 Mbps, translating into 11 percent of the total desiring speeds of at least 50 Mbps. About 60-70 percent of respondents said they would be willing to pay up to EUR 10 extra per month for an upgrade to a higher speed. Of those wanting at least 100 Mbps, 30 percent said they would be willing to pay EUR 10-20 extra per month.

Gunther Vogelpoel, head of Tele2's consumer division, told Telecompaper that the company has moderate expectations for the service. He acknowledged that a large part of susbcribers are satisfied with their current products at lower speeds. However, Fiberspeed should allow the operator to also reach the top end of the market. He declined to give any subscriber targets for the new service. He did note that the upgrade to VDSL2 is relatively inexpensive, given the company's existing fibre backhaul and ADSL2+ network. As a result, the capex budget should not change substantially from the current around EUR 50 million per year.

bk

It is funny that they say there is no need to switch to full fibre and then they go and call their product Fiberspeed!!

The problems they will face is that KPN, the Dutch incumbent, is planning to roll out a FTTH network and they also have to compete with UPC's 120mb/s cable products.

So I don't think VDSL2 will help them much in the longterm. It is noticeable that they aren't building a FTTC network, which is really what you need if going VDSL2, basically they are just limiting it to people who are close to existing exchanges.

It seems to be a very basic cheap way to try and compete with much better technologies. I suppose this is an approach that Eircom could take to compete with UPC.

watty

What would 1.5km be here? About 30% to 40% of people, if everyone actually had a phone line. Since loads of people don't have a phone line I guess < 20% of households (inc those that don't have a line) might get it here, if implemented.

At the 1.5km you'd maybe get 5 to 10Mbps. Not 60. That's why there is the distance limit. Technically in perfect conditions 15Mbps

From Wikipedia
eircom announced their plan to start providing VDSL2 within the year 2007. However there is not yet any firm date for any deployment as of May 2009.

See
http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=93103


http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=93103&page_number=4

This graph suggests about 16Mbps @ 1.5km for VDSL2, but these graphs are usually perfect lines with low cross talk. In the real world my 5Mbps to 10Mbps @ 1.5Km may apply


In the real world it may give twice the speed of ADSL @ 3km. At the 5km to 8km you will be down to 512kb to 2Mbps no matter what you do, depending on line quality.

bk

Watty is correct, the slight of hand that Tele2 is probably trying here and Eircom might end up trying is to introduce a product like this and sell it as "up to" 60mb/s when lots of people are only geting 2mb/s, so that they can try to compete with true high speed products based on FTTH and cable.

watty

Or even FTTC /FTTK / HFC that gives everyone at least 20Mbps.

Sponge Bob

They can subloop unbundle copper at FTTH aggregation nodes ( not just exchanges) from what I understand . That miight be because Holland has effective clearsighted regulation and stuff . Cheeky Dutch buggers