ESB puts the fibre in Smart’s diet

30 Jun 2008

A new deal signed between Smart Telecom and ESB’s telecoms division (ESBT) will enable Smart to triple its broadband coverage by making extensive use of the nation’s Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs).

The three-year deal will see ESBT provide Smart Telecom with up to 10Gbps of capacity around Ireland across two national fibre rings spanning the entire country.

This new infrastructure, along with changes in the regulatory environment for LLU (local loop unbundling), will potentially allow Smart Telecom to target up to 1.5 million consumers with high-capacity broadband services, a threefold increase of its current target market.

Smart Telecom’s regulatory and development director, John Quinn, explained the company will use this capacity to provide for the rollout of high-capacity business and residential services, including IPTV.

Coupled with the correct government and regulatory framework, the move will also potentially enable a significant increase in Smart’s local loop unbundling (LLU) coverage.

“Today’s deal with ESBT is a further commitment by Smart Telecom to roll out next-generation networks (NGNs) and services to the people of Ireland and being fibre-based, will reduce our carbon footprint due to lower power requirements than copper-based services,” Quinn explained.

“ESBT has demonstrated an ability to provide superb support and extremely high-capacity services. While other providers are reducing investment, Smart Telecom continues to invest in Ireland’s NGNs and fibre future,” Quinn added.

Smart Telecom’s current offering includes 1Mbps, 4Mbps, 5Mbps, 8Mbps, 10Mbps and 15Mbps products with no usage limits and no contention or line sharing.

Existing high-speed packages are available to over 550,000 consumers throughout the Smart Telecom exchanges in Dublin, Cork, Donegal, Galway, Laois, Limerick, Louth, Sligo and Waterford.

Tom Bambury, general manager of ESBT, said the deal with Smart will provide greater services to consumers.

“ESBT is pleased to provide the necessary infrastructure to Smart Telecom to provide greater capacity and wider choice to its customers. I am particularly pleased that ESB high-capacity fibre network is helping Smart Telecom to reduce its carbon footprint.”

By John Kennedy

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com