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While FTTH/O is widely seen and promoted as the future of wired and converged communications, only a few experts know that there are some unknown but major aspects of FTTH/O architectures that can make the difference between extinction and market domination. In the last few years important choices were made by pioneering organizations and companies, which iUHBA can analyze, learn, and benefit from.

Below is an oversimplified overview of their choices and strategies.

The first important decision for was to choose the “approach”:
1. Some chose to extend fiber wires to the home (Fiber-To-The-Premises)
2. Some chose to only extend fiber cables to the neighborhood (FTTN), street (FTTS) or curb (FTTC) and connect the homes with existing cabling

The second round of choices had to do with the technology “behind” these designs.

The second-most important decision was to choose for the technology. This is where most operators have either no choice (due to legacy systems ownership) or have opted for the wrong solution (maybe because that was the most conveniently available solution), such as the industry-standard: Passive Optical Network Technology (PON).

FiberBroadband Strategy vs. PON Solution

FTTH/Office systems should be built as scalable, robust, full duplex (two-way, synchronous), switched architectures. iUHBA will deliver "Carrier Grade/Class" services over Ethernet, which is a proven and extremely robust technology for data transfer. In the physical end-to-end optical fiber-based infrastructure, iUHBA will use Internet Protocol and Ethernet technologies.
The FiberBroadband solution is based on a kind of Active Ethernet Design (AED), but with several important modifications from what is deemed common. iUHBA has opted for a large-scale and all-out effort because of its plans to build a secure, future-proof and state-of-the-art infrastructure.

Some of the most important differences between PON designs and the FiberBroadband Active Ethernet Design are described below:

  • Active and State-of-the-art: The AED architecture has active components while a PON system has no active components, just a splitter and coupler/combiner. This is not only a more secure solution than PON systems, it is also future-proof because the active components are easily replaced by state-of-the-art technologies as and when the Company desires to “upgrade”, e.g. from its revolutionary 10 Gbps per connection offering to 40 Gbps (in the next decade) and to 100 Gbps (after 2020);
  • Core-switching Deeper into the area: FiberBroadband’s AED consists of fiber strands from UHBA’s Central Offices (COs) that go straight into a so-called core-switching hub (CSH), which is located closer to the customer than in usual topologies. In UHBA’s case the CSHs are typically located in the customer’s neighborhood, and in certain circumstances in their street;
  • Aggregate (or single) optical switching: From the CSH, the infrastructure to the homes or offices is built with fibers to the building where they are terminated in Aggregate Optical Switches (AOSs). In single occupancy units (for example detached homes or businesses) the fiber wiring is terminated in a single switch. The difference with PON is that they are limited distribution to just thirty-two (32) or sixty-four (64) homes/offices/buildings while iUHBA’s AED architecture can connect as many (or minimal number of) customers as desired;
  • 10 Gbps per user – dedicated: The speed/data traffic on a typical GPON system presently installed is limited to a certain bandwidth, which is for all to share, while the FiberBroadband AED is based on proprietary patented technology that enables iUHBA to deliver services of 10 Gbps to each individual user in both directions - downstream as well as upstream;
  • Futureproof: iUHBA’s AED is future-proof in terms of data traffic capabilities as well as in the technological sense because it is not required to make costly investments in upgrade technologies time and again when the technology matures or the (market’s/ subscribers’) need for speed and capacity increases. PONs are promoted as future-proof because of the simple fact that one core component of their system is in fact future-proof: the fiber wires. “Future-proof PON” is misleading because it does not actually refer to the PON technology but the core component;
  • From 10 Gbps to 40 Gbps to 100 Gbps: In case iUHBA deems it necessary to upgrade its systems from 10 Gbps services to 40 Gbps and ultimately to 100 Gbps (e.g. when the technology matures and the market demands), the company will need to make minimal physical efforts, and the costs can be absorbed by the company or in certain circumstances by the subscriber over the stretch of just a few months.
Major Advantages of the FiberBroadband Strategy:
  • Future-proof Scalability: Low cost and fast scalability of speeds up to 40 Gbps and ultimately 100 Gbps per connection;
  • Unlimited scale: Systems can connect an unlimited number of homes/offices/buildings/etc.;
  • Time to Market & Revenue: Time to market from end-to-end connectivity in a certain neighborhood is around four weeks, because the deployment/rollout/installation teams are scaled per neighborhood in terms of projects. Depending on the scale of the project, iUHBA can dedicate five, ten, or even 20 teams per neighborhood;
  • Dedicated link: Since each home or office has its own, dedicated fiber wire terminated at the premises, trouble-shooting, operations and maintenance is much easier than with any other system;
  • Secure transmissions: Since the FiberBroadband architecture does not result in a shared system, all transmissions are more secure than is the case with PON (which is inherently a shared system);
  • Communication device: iUHBA’s set-top-box (the Interactive MultiMedia Personal Communicator - iMPC) is designed as the most advanced communication tool in the industry. It is fully capable of direct interaction with the company’s servers so that the end-users are fully in charge of their subscribed, requested and bought products and services;
  • True-convergence: iUHBA's systems are built for convergence: the distribution of hundreds of Ultra-HDTV channels, Voice, Video, and ultra-fast Internet access, plus all kind of new, improved, and advanced services. There are no limits for any type or services, because of the combination of the advanced set-top-box at the customer's location, and the availability of virtually unlimited capacity for each customer;
  • Disaster-proof/ Mimimal Impact : In case of disruptions and cable breaks, iUHBA’s AED minimizes the impact to just the affected area(s) because the CSHs are not concentrated in one central location. iUHBA can install temporary systems in emergency/ disaster stricken areas.
FiberBroadband Specifics
iUHBA’s end-to-end optical-fiber infrastructures are entirely "Internet Protocol" (IP) based. iUHBA does not integrate the telephone company's copper wire and the Cable operator's coax cables in its infrastructures, at no point in, and in no parts of, its systems and architecture.

Instead of delivering TV signals through radio frequency over coax cable like the Cable operators do, iUHBA will deliver all video signals over IP, using Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) technologies. The bandwidth will allow iUHBA to grow with the scalability of clusters, silicon and interfaces to support large scale applications. Also, instead of providing telephone services over twisted-pair (copper-wire) like the telephone operators do, iUHBA will provide all voice services over IP, using Voice over Internet Protocol technologies (VoIP).

iUHBA is using IP-based technologies to build truly future-proof infrastructures. The Company believes that all FTTH/O infrastructures that are being built with the focus on "integrating" the existing legacy systems, are a complete waste of money because of the need to upgrade or to completely replace the systems in the near future, which may be even before any returns on the initial investments have been achieved.

When building a brand-new FTTH/O infrastructure, it is wiser to do so with all the technological elements based on state-of-the-art and truly future-proof technologies. In the FTTH/O FiberBroadband AED case, it is the Internet Protocol. This means that all desired services will be delivered over one pipe (the fiber wire), and the use of only one transfer mode (the Internet Protocol), and one distribution technology (Ethernet). This approach means that the convergence of data, voice and video signals become realistic and more manageable. To have three kinds of technologies (fiber, copper wire, and coax cable) for three kinds of services (internet, voice, and television) is unnecessary and promises many operational and financial troubles ahead.

The FiberBroadband AED infrastructure is thus mainly designed as "FTTH/O services over IP over Ethernet". This is the way a truly converged offering can be made possible.