I feel the need, the need for speed

By Sagee Ben-Zedeff

Categories: Innovation, Video Applications

August 18th, 2008

A few weeks ago Bezeq, Israel’s leading telecommunications provider, announced that its Board of Directors decided to move forward with the Next Generation Network (NGN) project. Bezeq is the dominant leader in the fixed line (wire-line) market in Israel and a strong player in the internet provider market (based on ADSL technology).

Bezeq will invest, according to the press release, more than $400 million in upgrading its infrastructure in order to provide internet services at bitrates of up to 50Mbps. The NGN will allow Bezeq to use its wire-line infrastructure to provide IPTV services that will compete with existing cable companies, as well as other complementary services. The company also intends to replace most of the copper lines that reach customers residencies with optic fibers to improve “last mile” bandwidth.

This is, of course, very interesting. As there is no such thing as more bandwidth, I can sure feel the need for speed. Current internet infrastructure in Israel is quite substandard. In Israel most internet connections at home use speeds of up to 3Mbps for download and up to 256Kbps of upload. In the US, for instance, download speed at most homes already reach 8Mbps and more while uploads already support more than 1Mbps.

Image taken from the policy paper “Speed Matters”.

As you can see from the above table, most video applications require at least 1Mbps of download speed. For HD television you need around 20Mbps. In a Communication Workers of America policy paper titled “Speed Matters – Affordable High Speed Internet For All“, authors argue that a high-speed interactive network on a national level will improve the quality of our economic, civic and personal life, not just improve our choice of entertainment.

For instance, high speed interactive broadband can connect health professionals and patients enabling telemedicine. Programs like REACH (Remote Evaluation of Acute Ischemic Stroke) can save the lives of thousands leaving in rural areas, away from the big hospitals.

Now THAT’S broadband! (CC)

A recent Pew Internet & American Life Project survey shows that more than 40% of all US adults now have a high-speed broadband internet connection at home. While the demographics are quite as expected (most users come from the 30-49 age group, white, well-educated and with a rather high income), the “community type” figures sits well with the “Speed Matters” moto – while in urban areas, only 13% of the users have broadband, in suburban areas 56% of the users enjoy it and in rural areas 31%.

In other words, it seems that broadband connection is used for its natural purpose – communication. Whether it is used for triple-play (voice, video, internet) or entertainment services (IPTV, games), it seems that broadband communication is the key and bandwidth is the basis for any broadband communication.

50Mbps in the home may sound a lot to you now, but when you think about multi-channel, on-demand, high definition video, real-time high-definition multi-user games, high definition video conferencing – all in the comfort of your living room, the numbers are quite reasonable, even a bit conservative.

Need for speed. (CC)

But still, upgrading from my 1.5M/256K connection at home to a 50Mbps connection would be a dramatic change of pace. And so I am quite pleased that (broad)band keeps marching on. I am quite sure it will have a great impact on our lives, both personally and as a society. I can already feel the need, the need for speed…*

* tag line for the movie “Top Gun”, voted as one of the top 100 movie quotes by the American Film Institute (that scene can be found here).