Vendor lock-in, outdated product design and inefficient installation processes. These are just some of the cost-intensive challenges internet service providers (ISPs) in the UK face when terminating fibre to millions of UK households.
Nordic CPE provider Icotera have figured out the secret to seamless installation, providing ISPs with an optical network termination (ONT) solution tailored exclusively to the UK market.
Out with the old – easily in with the new
When terminating fibre, the three main problems for ISPs in the UK are installation, design and size of the ONT.
First, many of the ONT suppliers in the UK do not provide an integrated fibre termination unit (FTU) which allows the technician doing the installation to securely terminate the fibre in a quick, seamless way. According to Volker Bendzuweit, GM for UK & DACH at Icotera, this results in major technical challenges and requires extra resources:
– Without an integrated FTU and an open vendor ONT, the installation process becomes extremely complex. In this case, the fibre technician must know exactly to what specific optical line termination (OLT) to connect to. Without integrated FTU the installer must install two boxes, which will be connected via a fibre cable. This results in high operational costs and loads of man-hours for the internet service provider.
Also, most of the ONT solutions in the UK are only available for on-wall installation instead of in-wall installation. This creates significant challenges in terms of design and size of the equipment:
– Mounting the equipment directly on the wall takes up more space and just looks clumsy with poor aesthetics. The end-users want as few boxes as possible in their home, and if the installed equipment disturbs the home interior, they are more likely to choose another supplier with a more contemporary product design, Bendzuweit explains.
“The solution is designed to ensure minimum effort and maximum output
for UK ISPs”
Volker Bendzuweit, General Manager, UK & DACH, Icotera
Tailored to UK standards
Icotera has developed an ONT solution specifically designed to meet the demands of tomorrow and to solve the challenges many ISPs in the UK face.
Icotera developed the i5200 residential ONT based on input from – and in close cooperation with – a leading UK based provider of last-mile full fibre networks.
Because the product is customised to the UK market, there are some obvious benefits for UK ISPs:
Vendor independency for flexibility and low TCO
– With Icotera i5200 residential ONU the ISP will no longer be constrained to invest in ONT and OLT from the same vendor. Icotera provides a vendor-independent solution with integrated FTU that automatically works with all OLTs. A solution that ensures minimum effort and maximum output.
Optional feature for increased business
– Additionally, the solution has profitable upselling possibilities for UK ISPs as it contains an optional voice over IP (VoIP) adapted to UK standards. This enables ISPs to offer their end-users fixed telephony as an additional service without extra installations.
Flexible installation and aesthetic design for increased customer satisfaction
Besides making the installation process a walk in the park, the i5200 promises a huge upgrade in terms of product design:
– The i5200 offers an optional in-wall installation that automatically fits the FTU within the UK standardised wall-cans - Pattress Boxes - leaving only customer-essential interfaces on the outside. The ONT itself will just slide on. It's very important that functionality and aesthetics go hand in hand, and with the i5200 the consumer avoids having visible cables lying around.
Read more about Icotera’s i5200 Residential GPON ONT Series here.
Interested in how to benefit from ONT eqipment tailored to UK households?
Give us a call: +45 70 10 00 33 or reach out for Volker Bendzuweit, GM DACH & UK: vbe@icotera.com.
Take it for a testdrive...
Interested in testing our residential GPON ONT - i5200?
We’ll be happy to send you a free i5200 sample for you to test it's performance. Please find more product info and request a test sample here
