TELEWEST ACTION GROUP

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(AFX-Focus) 2003-01-01 22:45 GMT: NTT to launch WDM broadband-cum-TV service in Autumn - report
TOKYO (AFX-ASIA) - Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp plans to employ wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technology to launch this autumn what it claims will be the nation's fastest broadband service, one that also offers up to 500 TV programs, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported, citing company sources.
It said existing coaxial cable will suffice to receive the service, under which a single optical fiber as thin as a human hair will deliver a large number of TV channels.

Sky Perfect Communications Inc has decided to use the service to air its programming and Japan Broadcasting Corp is expected to follow suit, the report said.

WDM transmits TV and broadband data at different wavelengths. NTT began development work on the service in 2001 and has been testing it at condominiums in Tokyo since March last year. It can transmit 500 channels of conventional TV programming, or 100 channels in case of high-definition TV, besides delivering broadband service with throughput of 1 megabit per second, the paper quoted sources as saying.

NTT intends to charge fees for using its fiber-optic networks.

Sky Perfect is due to begin using the service in fiscal 2003. The company currently offers a total of 300 channels using two satellites, but residents of condos that use a communal antenna and coaxial cable can now watch only about 30-40 channels due to the cable's limited capacity.

Sky Perfect aims to have condominiums run optical fiber through existing cable, hoping that an increase in channels will help attract new subscribers. The company also intends to use NTT's service in areas that are not covered by its satellite broadcasts.

Since only one optical fiber will be needed to be inserted into existing coaxial cable, it will cost at most only a few dozen yen a month extra to use the new service, according to the sources.

NTT expects revenues from its fixed-line phone service to decline by some 1 trln yen in fiscal 2007. In order to offset this, the telecom firm is striving to raise income from its broadband business to 700-800 bln yen by that year. NTT estimates that revenues from broadband will exceed 1 trln yen annually if the new service is adopted by more broadcast firms.