The history and future of fiber to the X
Welcome to the gigabit revolution!
At increasing speed, we are evolving into a global digital society. This is profoundly transforming the way we live, work, learn and thrive.
Around 15 to 20 years ago, home and business internet connections were pretty slow. Downloading a single image would take hours. And, since the internet was usually accessed via telephone lines, you’d have to choose between making a phone call and using the internet—you couldn’t do both at the same time.
The arrival of broadband changed that forever. Finally, it was possible to transmit information over multiple channels simultaneously. Data could be sent and received over the long-awaited, multi-lane “information superhighway”— using just one cable.
From the outset, fiber-optic technology has enabled broadband speeds. “Gigabit,” which has become a household word, is practically synonymous with “fiber to the home” (FTTH). One gigabit is one billion bits, and, when delivered in one second, that’s 1 Gbps or 1,000 Mbps— about 100 times higher than the average downstream internet speed in the United States.
