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INNOVATION
& DESIGN Home Page Architecture Brand Equity Auto Design Game Room SMALLBIZ Smart Answers Success Stories Today's Tip INVESTING Investing: Europe Annual Reports BW 50 S&P Picks & Pans Stock Screeners Free S&P Stock Report SCOREBOARDS Hot Growth 100 Mutual Funds Info Tech 100 S&P 500 B-SCHOOLS Undergrad Programs MBA Blogs MBA Profiles MBA Rankings Who's Hiring Grads | | JANUARY 3, 2001 FROM LE MONDE INTERACTIF Will Radio Revolutionize the Last Mile? Deregulation and a less expensive new technology promise to shake up the world of French telecom --and get a lot more citizens on the high-speed Web
France Télécom no longer controls what's commonly referred to as the last mile, or the local loop connecting phone users directly to their operators. At the same time, a new technology that connects operators and users via radio transmission has arrived. The new system, called Radio Local Loop (RLL), is sure to take off for numerous reasons. For one, it's much cheaper and easier to install than other technologies used today: Antennas and base stations connect each user to the wider network, instead of costlier cable or satellites. GETTING CONNECTED. In addition to providing cost and installation benefits, the new system gives companies access to high-speed connections that far outdo those currently offered. It also will bring high-speed Internet connections to small towns and rural villages, where cable or DSL service is nonexistent and might otherwise stay that way. The French Authority for Telecommunications Regulation (ART) has already handed out licenses for RLL to go on the market in 2001, and competition is likely to be tight. RLL is very simple. Similar to cell-phone technology, phone connections using RLL are enabled thanks to antennas -- in this case, installed in homes or companies. Base stations located from 4 to 10 kilometers away from the antennas manage the exchange of voice and data, connecting to the operator's communication center via radio, satellite, or cables. The center handles the interface with other private or public communications networks for voice and data, including Internet access. And when it comes to Net access, the speed offered by RLL is very alluring. Indeed, it can reach speeds of two megabits per second, faster than other services offered today. But this level of connection speed will be offered only to companies, not to private homes, where the speed will be equal to that offered by systems such as DSL, which averages 512 kilobits per second. Some operators will offer packages that include telephone and Net access, in which case connection speeds will drop to 64 kilobits per second. One drawback: The quality of the radio transmission depends largely on weather conditions and can decrease during showers or storms. SIGNING UP OPERATORS. But one small inconvenience hasn't been enough to hold back contenders. Two providers, FirstMark Communications and Fortel, have already been chosen by ART to handle communications on the national level. Two more providers still need to be selected for regional communications. So, in urban parts of the country, customers will be able to choose between four service providers -- stimulating competition not just between operators offering RLL but also between all telecom operators. Already FirstMark Communications is promising phone costs that will be 35% lower than France Télécom. FirstMark is getting ready for the coming revolution. Because radio base stations are easy, quick, and cost-effective to install, the company plans to get to work right away. By 2004, it would like to be able to provide its services to 60% of France's population. And since other operators also will soon be installing base stations, customers basically will have enough coverage, especially in metropolitan areas. The hope that satellites would provide a solution in more rural areas has proved illusory, since they're still too expensive. So RLL is likely to be the only alternative there. And if the technology's advantages prove convincing enough for consumers and businesses, the upcoming battle for the local loop in France could be much fiercer than originally expected.  By Jean-Marc Gimenez Translated by Inka Resch  | | |
 Copyright 2001 , by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.Terms of Use | Privacy Policy |
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