TORONTO–The coming wave of next-generation broadband networks need to be faster, more personalized, and more available to Canadian consumers and businesses of all stripes.
Speaking at the Canadian Telecom Summit here on Monday, senior executives from six smaller service providers said the next-gen networks must meet market demands for higher speeds, more symmetrical bandwidth, more competition, and greater choice of access providers. They also called for steady, consistent regulatory policies to encourage substantial private investment in upgraded networks.
Bryan Boyd, president and CEO of TeraGo Networks, stressed that high-speed broadband service must be extended to all sections of the country, especially smaller towns and more rural locales. Otherwise, he warned, the current income disparities between workers in the big cities and smaller towns will only grow wider.
“This is the number one policy issue that has to be addressed,” he said. “Without the access to broadband, they will fall further and further behind.”
Boyd suggested that TeraGo, which delivers fixed wireless service to businesses in 4,800 commercial buildings in 43 smaller markets across the nation, is now seeking to boost its capacity and speeds to serve that segment better. “Our message is that all businesses need high-speed broadband access,” he said. “I challenge you to find any business that doesn’t have high information needs now.”
Tony Ciciretto, president of Cogeco Data Services, emphasized next-generation broadband networks must be open, “flexible, and customized” to respond to the growing needs of customers. “We’re past the stage where we’re slugging it out over feeds and speeds,” he said. “We can’t anticipate where our customers are going in the long term. They will be the drivers of innovation.”
In particular, Ciciretto argued that service providers must develop “application-aware networks” with “more personalized, interactive applications” that allow customers to work together on projects much more than ever before. “The genie is really out of the bottle, and that genie is collaboration,” he said. “We have to work in open-source environments and we have to extend collaboration.”
Drew McNaughton, CTO of Axia NetMedia, said public-private partnerships can often spur the development of next-gen broadband networks faster than purely private efforts. He noted that his company has worked with the governments of Alberta, France, and Singapore to do just that, with those jurisdictions investing heavily in subsidizing new IP standards infrastructure and then opening those networks to scores of access providers.
“The governments in these markets have decided that they must provide the stimulus to make it happen,” he said, citing such other nations as the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand that are now following their lead. For instance, he said, France has leapfrogged from last to nearly first in broadband connectivity among Western European nations by pursuing this path.
John Piercy, CEO of Atria Networks, contended that growing numbers of applications and converged services are driving the need for greater broadband bandwidth, higher transmission speeds, and more secure Internet connections. He also said regulatory compliance demands and industry best practices have heightened the focus on network infrastructure.
“Businesses are requiring more and higher-quality data connectivity,” he said. In addition, “bandwidth demands are becoming increasingly symmetrical.” So, he argued, service providers must adapt to these requirements.
Alan Breznick is a Toronto-based senior analyst at Heavy Reading, part of the Light Reading Communications Network at TechWeb and is covering the Canadian Telecom Summit for Cartt.ca.
