‘Gimme Fibre Day’ is Worth Celebrating

This week we celebrate ‘Gimme Fibre Day,’ otherwise known as the birthday of Nobel Prize winner Sir Charles Kuen Kao, the man who changed the way the world communicates by transmitting light in fibers for optical communication. Sir Kao died at 84 in September 2018.

CLICK TO TWEET: CommScope's Phil Sorsky explains that without fiber, many of the audio and streaming services we take for granted would be impossible. That's the purpose of Gimme Fibre Day.

Without fiber, many of the audio and streaming services we take for granted would be impossible. Netflix, with more than 150 million subscribers, is starting to see pressure from new international streaming services Apple TV+ and Disney+ that were just launched in November. WarnerMedia, the owner of HBO and Warner Brothers, and NBCUniversal are set to launch proprietary streaming services in the coming months. These new rivals will join original programming efforts from Amazon Prime and YouTube, plus traditional broadcasters, in trying to topple Netflix.

As consumers try to figure out what streaming services they’re willing to pay for, their demand for fibre connectivity will only continue to increase.

Building Fibre Broadband Infrastructure across Europe and Africa

In support of network operators across the globe, CommScope is developing connectivity solutions to meet tomorrow’s network needs. Here are some examples of momentum across Europe and Africa—the region I support:

• Largest Telecoms Provider in the UK: CommScope has partnered with a service provider who owns and maintains all telephone wires, ducts, cabinets and exchanges. By extending their ultrafast broadband footprint using Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) and G-Fast technology, the network operator is making faster, more reliable services available across the country, including hard-to-reach rural areas. Currently, some 20,000 premises are being connected with FTTP each week. FTTP should be available for four million premises by the end of March 2021, as analogue networks are also phased out.
  
  The company is tapping into fiber innovation for high capacity networks. CommScope’s Fact Optical Distribution Frame is a key part of the network, helping high fiber-count through rapid deployment, easy to install plug and play connectivity and highly usable density.

• As Ireland’s only pure fiber network, SIRO can achieve speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps per second whereas the national average for fixed broadband connections averages at 40 Mbps
  
  In fact, 60 percent of SIRO customers are on a 1G service. This means customers can connect as many devices as they’d like without having to worry about a slowdown in connection. Gigabit speeds promise to support data simultaneously, making it possible for family members to stream music, watch 4K video and play games without a hiccup. The company has been collaborating with CommScope on building a business case for network convergence with fiber innovation. Check out this video for more highlights.

• Nigeria’s first fiber to the home network: As Africa’s biggest economy experiences growth in non-oil sectors such as telecoms, we are seeing investment in broadband connectivity for the enterprise, small businesses and individuals.
  
  Despite unique challenges, ipNX has been able to adapt its deployment methodology making it the first company to roll out FTTH in Nigeria. Check out this video to uncover how ipNX is connecting homes with fiber, tapping into CommScope’s innovative technologies.

It’s great to see more markets committing to delivering world-class fibre infrastructure. We must continue to prioritize investment as all homes and businesses should be on a level playing field in terms of connectivity – regardless of location.