realityBYTES
By Adrian Weckler
One hundred megabits per second: if such a broadband speed had been promised in Ireland two years ago, most – including myself – wouldn’t have believed it. Yet, come August, UPC will take the leash off the state’s biggest broadband upgrade yet.
Indeed, many of the cable operator’s 30Mbs customers are already seeing the 100Mbs speeds (several have e-mailed screenshots of web speed tests of up to 160Mbs).
For someone who is a born sceptic about Irish telecoms companies delivering change, it is a confusing development. But make no mistake: this is a game changer.
Here are some reasons why:
1. It will enable proper IP television
At the moment, internet TV is best viewed in its small actual onscreen size because of the low bandwidth available in the mass market.
As a result, services such as RTE’s Player, while handy, do not measure up to watching shows on a television.
With this kind of bandwidth, it becomes possible to boost the definition of broadcasts over the web.
2. It will change the movie distribution business
Ten days ago, Apple opened up its iTunes movie downloading service to Irish iTunes uses.
The move marks a trend showing the purchase of films online as a mainstream, legal activity.
But what’s the point of downloading a film if it takes 45 minutes to do so?
Even illegal downloaders are put off by the waiting times they have to endure to download film files.
With speeds like this, they will have them in a couple of minutes. And because that is becoming possible, it creates a bigger incentive for an Irish Netflix to open its doors here.
3. It will boost minority sport
At present, there are a number of sports that have a large following, but not enough to justify a spot on a broadcaster’s schedule. Stations such as Eurosport and Cycling.tv broadcast live sports events on subscription over the web.
But mediocre broadband speeds mean that the quality of the picture is not good enough to attract a critical audience mass.
With better broadband, sports organisers will be able to transmit events in higher definition, without the cost of finding a spot terrestrial or digital network.
4. It will trigger other operators to boost their broadband offerings
The 100Mbs service has been flagged for some time. In preparation, Eircom recently announced a free speed upgrade to all of its broadband customers, from 1Mbs to 8Mbs.
This is a direct response to UPC.
Similarly, mobile 3G operators will have to press on with upgrading their own networks, as will new entrants, such as Imagine Wimax.
5. It will have a ripple effect outside UPC areas When launched, the UPC service will reach only 340,000 homes. When rolled out completely, it will reach 700,000 homes.
That leaves almost half the population outside its reach. Same old broadband story in Ireland? Not necessarily.
When rivals such as 3 Ireland, Vodafone and Eircom upgrade their own networks to compete with UPC, it is likely that much of this improvement will also be seen in areas not covered by UPC.
Put simply, UPC’s service will expand the market for high-bandwidth services.
That will translate into additional demand, and that will lead to pressure for greater bandwidth throughout the country.
We don’t yet know what this service will cost. We do know that there will be a stand-alone broadband service, and that it will not be 100Mbs as a bundle of television, phone and internet services.
When it arrives in August, it will be a new dawn for Irish broadband.
