Alcatel-Lucent has won a tender for upgrading Bezeq Israeli Telecommunication Co. Ltd.'s (TASE: BEZQ) network. The tender is worth tens of millions of dollars, over several years. The upgrade will make 100 mbps Internet communications available to most users all over Israel.
Alcatel-Lucent will provide Bezeq with VDSL2 Vectoring solutions to upgrade its existing network. Most carriers worldwide have chosen this solution, because it enables them to offer high speeds using existing copper wire infrastructure. At the same time, carriers are gradually replacing this infrastructure with fiber optic cable, but this is a much lengthier and more expensive process, and so Bezeq's copper wire lines will continue to serve its customers for many years to come.
Alcatel-Lucent's solution will enable Bezeq to deal with several problems, first and foremost with the fact that the company is currently incapable of providing 100 mbps speeds to all users, but only to a minority, because of the distances between subscribers and telecommunications cabinets. The company promises speeds of up to 100 mbps in its publicity, but in fact speeds generally reach 40-50 mbps at most, and even that cannot be provided to all subscribers, because the further the subscriber is from the cabinet, the greater the noise on copper lines, adversely affecting performance.
As far as Bezeq is concerned, the upgrade is vital for dealing with the technological limitation, which is also a marketing and image limitation, since rival provider HOT Telecommunication Systems Ltd. (TASE: HOT) brands itself as providing 100 mbps through the country. Bezeq also needs the solution following the launch of Israel Electric Corporation's fiber optic venture, which will start to operate next year.
It is believed that, although Bezeq has selected Alcatel-Lucent, it will in fact ultimately work simultaneously with two vendors, the second one being Adtran, which bought Nokia-Siemens' fixed-line broadband access business. Adtran, has a working product under trial with Bezeq. Alcatel-Lucent is a world leader that has already installed its solution on the networks of many European carriers.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 2, 2013
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