|
BRIAN SANTO
DSL service is most popularly known as a service for the consumer market. As it comes up against increasing competition from cable modems, many analysts expect DSL will eventually be found lacking in comparison.
Cable modem services might eventually vanquish DSL in subscribers' homes, but there is one area where DSL is likely to flourish, the small- to medium-sized enterprise (SME).
The impetus for this growth will be voice-over-DSL (VoDSL).
T1 lines are generally outside the means of the SME market, defined as companies with 1 to 500 employees. Dial-up service is too limited. It is the rare cable operator that is able to reach these customers to provide much of a competitive challenge. By adding voice to the high-speed data services DSL is typically used for, DSL is a compelling sell.
Nortel refers to VoDSL as the "killer application of voice and data convergence."
The company cites estimates that VoDSL will grow to over 8.6 million lines by 2005.
"These SMEs are actually the majority of companies globally - and still, they have been ignored in the past for data and voice communication," according to Nancy Szekretar, an analyst with Allied Business Intelligence. ABI just issued a report, "Voice-Over-DSL: SME Markets for Integrated Access Devices and Voice Gateways," authored by Szekretar.
Growth in the market will be slow in the very near term - the next six months or so. VoDSL involves the integration of at least three pieces of complex equipment - IAD, voice gateway and DSLAM, Szekretar explains.
There are still some interoperability issues, but most have been ironed out. Costs may be high but are coming down.
According to Texas Instruments, with VoDSL-enabled modems, end-users will have access to up to four managed voice lines (Lucent says that number can go up to 24). Operational costs can be decreased by bundling voice channels and data services.
Provisioning the lines will be the thorniest issue.
"This could take anywhere from a week to six months to happen - and basically, these days no one can tell," she says. "The ILECs are obviously reluctant to give the lines to the CLECs. This is a big problem, one that still requires attention."
Another area of growth will be the multi-tenant unit (MTU) and multi-dweller unit (MDU) market.
This includes not only apartment buildings, but also conference centers, airports and office buildings. The competition here is intense, but again, this is an area where head-to-head competition with cable modem service is unlikely.
ABI notes that there are 67 million SMEs worldwide, and the opportunity is huge. They expect the VoDSL market will really begin to take off mid-2001, when the problems have been ironed out and the market is better prepared. Europe is likely to take the lead, but the Asia-Pacific and U.S. markets will remain close behind.
An unanswered - and for now unanswerable - question is: Will gaining a firm footing in the SME market give DSL service providers a springboard to continue attacking the home/consumer market?
Charter Communications rolled out Wink Communications' interactive TV service to digital subscribers in South Florida.
South Florida brings the number of Wink Communications households to more than 300,000, joining more than 20 other Charter cable systems.
Wink was also recently added by Adelphia Communications in Buffalo, N.Y. Adelphia plans to launch Wink in Vermont and Ohio next month.
Wink delivers interactivity synchronized to TV programming and advertising. Digital cable customers can buy products or request information, play trivia games, look at statistics on a ball game and more, while continuing to watch the program. Wink collects the responses for purchases and information requests, aggregates them and forwards them to the appropriate advertiser, merchandiser or programmer.
ELLACOYA IP SWITCH Ellacoya Networks is aiming to make it easier to provide IP-based services through switch products that have the capability to cross-reference network traffic with the user profiles of customers/subscribers. The company's switch, the SSG 44000, is a 44 Gbps, carrier-grade, modular intelligent IP switching platform with a range of network interfaces for various deployments, including Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, DS-3, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) and packet over Sonet (PoS). At the core of the SGS is a scalable standards-based directory system that stores profiles for subscribers, services, network delivery attributes, portal elements, billing characteristics and other data.
TW CABLE ON WITH ERICSSON Time Warner Cable's selection of Ericsson cable modems for nationwide use may be a nod to consumer concerns about the security of "always on" connections. The Ericsson PipeRider HM200c cable modem features what the company calls PipeLock technology, which enables consumers to suspend communications at the press of a button. This ensures total security for the user when the computer is not in use. The HM200c also offers USB connectivity to a PC in addition to standard Ethernet connections.
Back to this issue
|
