Frank:
Very timely discussion on VDSL. Reading between the lines of e-mails I continually receive from a PacBell engineer I keep in contact with, it does appear that this is in-fact the present longer term thinking of this particular RBOC -- SBC. This was in response to some comments that Michael Armstrong had at a Townhall luncheon I attended a few days ago that I had passed onto him. Obviously, acquisition of a tremendous amount of HFC plant, particularly in California, has turned up the heat on the ability of SBC to maintain the stability, if not growth, of their local phone business as data transmission becomes core to the business model & video enters the scene in a few years.
In the e-mail I saw words like "VDSL," "co-axial," "fiber," & "copper" to describe what they are doing TODAY in the engineering & purchasing of new equipment that will extend the presently limited capabilities of DSL today. The RBOCs, as we all know, must work to extend their DSL footprint, which is way behind cable HFC plant. But they must also address the inevitable point at which they must deliver to the customer video capability or find their investment today a liability tomorrow.
Needless to say, IMHO, the RBOCs, the ones that will be around tomorrow, are now revisiting the delivery of video as the only means going forward to keep the cablecos in check. Let's just say, the RBOCs got their work cut out for them.
Interesting to Esprey of Sprint discuss ION today on CNBC. Hmmm.
lml
PS. Keep those teleco centerfold's comin'. |
