Achievement of the Digital Agenda targets for Broadband...
We are probably all familiar with these goals by now - but they are:-
1 - basic broadband to all Europeans by 2013
2 - all Europeans have access to much higher internet speeds of above 30 Mbps by 2020
3 - 50% or more of European households subscribe to internet access above 100 Mbps
But what do these goals mean in practice? The first two targets are primarily underpinned by infrastructure investment.
The third is subtly different in the use of the word 'subscribe'. So I have two questions where I would like some input from as many people as possible participating in this blog...
What will stop us achieving the infrastructure goals (1 & 2)?
How would you describe the benefit of subscribing to a 100Mbps service to a household consumer?
Dont want an in depth debate on this question - just some 'off the cuff' answers....









Comments
What do these goals mean in
What do these goals mean in practice? Off the cuff... they mean those in charge of funding will go to the telcos to ask them how to reach these goals. Telcos will advise them to give them the money to patch up the phone networks and they will then market it as 'superfast' but only a few near cabinets will get anything like the headline speeds, the rest will get 'upto' but the telcos will hide this fact. My guess is this is happening in most countries. So in answer to your question, the incumbents and their vast array of 'analysts' and marketeers will stop us achieving our goals. Very few will have access to 100Mbps unless its through Altnets.
Second question.
I would describe the benefit of subscribing to a 100Mbps service to a household would be that your family will be able to do anything online that is currently possible, all at the same time, and that if you are on a 100Mbps service you are likely on a fibre to your home, and as such that service can be upgraded as and when you need it.
Roger, your first question
Roger, your first question can be answered very easily: The main thing that will stop us achieving the infrastructure goals is revenu driven telecomcompanies. Their main concern is to get a good result for shareholders. Bringing connections to rural communities under the same conditions cities or bigger villages have, is not in their interest.
Your second question: A 100 Mbps connection is not just for the benefit of a current household situation, it is an investment for the future. To look at it that way shows the need for local-based economy and networking. Compare it to B4RN where communities do it theirselves, or to Swedish OpenNet and you see very healthy ways of broadband development, where take-up rates are no points of discussion. Everybody get their connection, economy stays local.
Two good responses - but more
Two good responses - but more please.... and from across Europe? ????
I think everyone must agree
I think everyone must agree with those two answers Roger...
To quote a credible research
To quote a credible research house:
"A large portion of investors’ scepticism about telecom stocks stems from the perception that revenue can only go in one direction: down. Due to limited potential for cost cutting, this would leave telco incumbents’ free cash flows (and valuation) under structural pressure....
...Being an incumbent operator has not been easy in
the last decade: regulators have made incumbents
open their fixed-line networks at a very low unit
cost to promote service competition first in voice
then in broadband. At the same time, governments
and regulators have opened the mobile market to
new entrants each time they auctioned off new
spectrum. But technological change might shake
off this state of play. We expect that new types of
usage will increase the need for bandwidth,
requiring more fibre in the fixed access networks;
a greater number of cells and more spectrum in
mobile networks. These trends will favour players
who can afford the extra spending, mainly the
incumbents and the cable operators, and might leave alternative operators with little opportunity to continue growing their customer base via discounted prices.
Given the high fixed cost nature (opex and capex)
of the telecoms business, an operator can only
achieve positive cashflows when reaching a
critical mass of subscribers. Also, telecom equipment needs a lot of reinvestment (for network upgrades) which can be afforded only by the scale (and cash flow-generating) player."
Objectives maybe useful in signalling total scale, but is share of that scale affordable?