A few more details have recently been disclosed by Telecom Italia about its NGN2 (next generation network) investments.
Telecom Italia’s CTO, Stefano Pileri, confirmed during its keynote speech at C5 World in Milan that the company is willing to invest € 6.5 bn in its NGN2 project.
However, to enable ultra-broadband connectivity, Telecom Italia is not massively investing in FTTH (fiber to the home) solutions. Instead, it plans to deploy both FTTCab (fiber to the cabinet) and FTTB (fiber to the building) solutions using VDSL2 technology over copper on customer drop.
FTTCab will support downstream rates up to 50 Mbit/s in no dense areas, while FFTB will support rates up to 100 Mbit/s in dense areas or where fibre access infrastructure is readily available.
Deployment of this NGN2 ultra-broadband access network already started in Milan covering 5.000 buildings and deployment in Rome is coming soon. According to the latest three-year plan, 5,2% of the population will be reached by end of 2009.
The Fiber + VDSL2 technology could reach 65% of the population in a decade (or shorter, depending on investments and regulatory climate, added Pileri), reaching 75.000 street cabinets out of 145.000.
