(Image Credit: iStockPhoto/BartekSzewczyk)
CES remains one of the most important annual showcases for consumer technology, highlighting innovations that will soon shape everyday life. However, many of those new services and devices will only reach consumers smoothly if network operators upgrade and adapt their infrastructure to meet the increased demand.
Kevin Forster, chairman of the Broadband Forum and head of innovation at BT, warns that the breakthroughs on show at CES will depend on faster last-mile solutions such as G.fast. Given his role in preparing networks for future services, Forster’s view underscores the urgency for operators to plan and invest now.
“Delivering tomorrow’s consumer trends—4K video, location-based services, enhanced security, home automation, video sharing, immersive gaming and seamless home office collaboration—requires considerably more bandwidth,” Forster explained. “There are only a few practical ways to provide the capacities that 4K and similar services demand. G.fast is a viable approach to quickly and effectively roll out the necessary broadband performance.”
G.fast has been the subject of industry attention and trials, including early field tests by BT. The ITU-T standardized G.9701 (G.fast) in December 2014 to enable gigabit-class speeds—up to 1 Gbps—over a single twisted-pair copper line within existing local loop copper networks. By leveraging existing cabling, G.fast can deliver substantial speed improvements without the extensive civil works required for full fiber-to-the-home deployments.
Forster emphasizes that G.fast’s appeal lies in its ability to extend the value of current network assets. “Because G.fast performs well over the short copper runs typically found from cabinet to premises, it makes fiber-to-the-cabinet architectures more practical and cost-effective,” he said. “That combination lets operators offer the bandwidth future applications require while remaining competitive.”
These remarks follow the Broadband Forum’s Broadband 20/20 vision, which sets out to unlock new market opportunities by applying advanced technologies across home, small business and multi-dwelling environments. The forum’s agenda includes virtualization and programmability through NFV and SDN, ultra-fast access technologies, Internet of Things integration, and preparing networks for the eventual arrival of 5G. Together, these approaches aim to create more flexible, efficient and future-ready broadband infrastructures.
As consumer demand for richer, higher-resolution content and low-latency interactive services grows, operators must weigh options for delivering performance economically and quickly. G.fast offers a transitional path that can accelerate high-bandwidth availability by combining fiber backhaul with short-range copper delivery, minimizing disruption while boosting capacity.
Whether operators choose G.fast, full-fiber deployments, or a hybrid strategy will depend on local conditions, cost considerations and long-term network planning. Still, the industry consensus reflected by the Broadband Forum and operators like BT suggests that leveraging technologies such as G.fast will be an important part of meeting the near-term bandwidth needs of consumers and businesses alike.
Do you think operators need to deploy G.fast to cope with upcoming demand? Share your thoughts in the comments.
To learn about events like those organized by the Broadband Forum, visit Telecoms Events.