WCA January 2020

From the Americas

“End users ask farmers to deliver a consistent and high quality crop without adequate Internet access and reliable broadband speeds, which undoubtedly impacts their efficiency and sustainability,” said Tim Venverloh, vice president of sustainability strategy for USB. “There’s a clear disparity between connectivity in rural versus non-rural areas. The lack of connectivity, however, extends to farmers past the farm gate. When farmers can’t maximise the functionality of their equipment, particularly in the middle of the field, it has repercussions beyond the farm. The timely dissemination and use of data is becoming more important in [agriculture]. Farmers continually look for ways to improve efficiencies while protecting natural resources. Upwards of 50 per cent of the farmers we surveyed want to incorporate more technology into their operations, but they are held back by limited connectivity. Improving their access to broadband needs to be a priority.” In Short. . .  Liberty Latin America (LLA) has plans to acquire AT&T’s wireline and wireless operations in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands for $1.95 billion. Balan Nair, LLA’s president and CEO, said the combination of LLA’s high-speed broadband and TV business with AT&T’s mobile operations will create an integrated provider across the spectrum of communications, while adding AT&T’s businesses will help LLA’s more rapid deployment of 5G using its fibre for backhaul.  Blue Planet, a division of Ciena, has announced a new intelligent automation solution for a unified view of network and service inventory, aimed at eliminating costly manual processes. The new Blue Planet inventory and network synchronisation (INS) solution is said to reduce order-to-service fallout by up to 40 per cent and accelerate the trouble-to-resolve process by up to 30 per cent. INS helps service providers to maintain a network that can quickly adapt to changing end- user demands, driving greater efficiencies and faster time-to-market for 5G, video, IoT and more.  New research from Technavio indicates that the global “over the top” (OTT) market will expand by $77.7 billion at a CAGR of over 13 per cent between 2019 and 2023. OTT refers to film and television content provided via a high-speed Internet connection, rather than via a cable or satellite provider.  Southern Cross Cable Network (SCCN) and Pioneer Consulting have announced that the Southern Cross NEXT project has achieved Contract in Force (CIF) and entered the construction project phase. The 16,148km system is expected to be ready for service in January 2022, delivering 72Tbps of capacity between Sydney (Australia), Auckland (New Zealand) and the USA.  DQE Communications’ regional network, based around Pittsburgh, serves carriers and enterprises across Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia. The company is aiming to meet the growing SD-WAN demand from the enterprise market with a new managed product that will work as an overlay to existing networks or use all new connectivity. Gill Watson – Features Editor

Broadband Funding turns its focus onto rural connections

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has confirmed it will spend $152 million to provide or improve rural broadband in the states of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. USDA will supply the funds through the Community Connect Grant Program, the Telecommunications Infrastructure Loan Program and the Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program. “Deploying high-speed broadband Internet connectivity, or e-Connectivity, in rural America expands access to essential health, educational, social and business opportunities,” said the deputy under-secretary for rural development, Donald “DJ” LaVoy. Previous similar programmes have been in operation. “USDA has local representatives in most states who help operators through the agency’s application process,” said Chad Rupe, acting administrator for USDA Rural Development’s Rural Utilities Services during a presentation at Fiber Connect in Orlando in 2019. And while the Federal Communications Commission’s definition of broadband is 25Mbit/s download speeds, USDA has a preference for operators planning to deploy infrastructure with symmetric speeds of at least 100 Mbit/s. Mr Rupe added that “those adhering only to FCC standards get a much lower score”. The agency has numerous examples of operators bringing high-speed fixed-access broadband to rural communities. Among those receiving USDA funding are Logan Telephone Coop, which plans to use $34.4 million in Telecommunications Program loan funds to upgrade FTTH infrastructure in southwest Kentucky; BEK Communications Coop, which is using an $844,000 Community Connect grant to install a 49-mile FTTH network in North Dakota’s Morton County; and iGo Technology’s plan to deliver enhanced broadband in southwest Virginia via a $3 million Community Connect grant. The provider will use some of the grant to deliver free broadband to a community centre for two years, as one of the programme’s mandates. “Efficiency and sustainability” at risk This will be welcome news for the majority of US farmers who currently struggle with poor, or non-existent, broadband. A new study, “Rural Broadband and the American Farmer: Connectivity Challenges Limit Agriculture’s Economic Impact and Sustainability,” commissioned by the United Soybean Board (USB) revealed that lack of access to broadband in rural areas takes a significant toll on American farmers and the economy, with an alarming 60 per cent claiming that their connectivity is insufficient to maintain their businesses. Data from the United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service indicates that farming contributes nearly $133 billion of the country’s gross domestic product. Based on USB’s rural broadband survey, the lack of connectivity negatively impacts farmers responsible for $80 billion of gross domestic product.

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Wire & Cable ASIA – January/February 2020