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Pfyn/Berne, 13 August 2009, 11:00
Municipality of Pfyn (TG) and Swisscom to cooperate in the construction of a fibre-optic network
The municipality of Pfyn and Swisscom have signed a cooperation agreement for the construction of a fibre-optic network. As well as promoting infrastructure competition, the partnership will bring cost-efficiencies for both Pfyn and Swisscom. Swisscom sees the project as an opportunity to gain additional experience in a municipality outside the main urban centres. Cooperation in Pfyn is open to other providers who are prepared to invest in future-oriented infrastructure and share the associated risks.
The construction of a fibre-optic network is necessary in order to be able to meet the future bandwidth requirements of businesses and private households , i.e. the desire for even faster Internet access. The district of Dettighofen, which belongs to the political municipality of Pfyn, is under-equipped in terms of television and Internet cable connections compared with Pfyn. Internet connections are slow, making teleworking at times impossible or extremely difficult. Cooperation between the municipality of Pfyn and Swisscom will serve to prevent the emergence of monopoly structures in the fibre-optic network thanks to the existence of strong competition in the infrastructure area. In addition, joint construction will mean the network can be built faster and, above all, more cost-effectively, for the benefit of both parties.
Jacqueline Müller, mayor of Pfyn, is very positive about the cooperation: "In Swisscom, we have a reliable partner. Thanks to the new fibre-optic technology, we will be able to turn the longstanding locational disadvantage due to poor cable connections into a locational advantage. The residents of Dettighofen will now be able to benefit from teleworking under the best possible conditions." End customers will receive one connection box per household, enabling them to simply switch the connector cable to change to another provider. Customers will benefit in future from attractive offerings from a range of network and service providers. Competing services will be offered over the respective optical fibres of the cooperation partners. The first offerings for residential customers and SMEs are expected to be available from 2010.
According to the agreement, the fibre-optic network in Dettighofen will be constructed by the electrical utility, Elektrizitätswerk Pfyn, and will involve laying four fibres per household, two of which will be allocated to Swisscom. This will be the first time that Swisscom will cooperate in FTTH expansion with a more rural municipality. In making the move, the telecoms provider is underlining its fibre-optic commitment in locations outside the main urban centres. At the same time, it sees this pilot project as an opportunity to gain further cooperation experience in rural areas of Switzerland. Swisscom is already working with Groupe E to expand the fibre-optic network in the canton of Freiburg: the two pilot projects concern a district in the city of Freiburg and the municipality of Neyruz with a population of around 2,000. Swisscom is also laying fibre-optic cables all the way to the customer's premises in the cities of Zurich, Basel, Geneva, St Gallen, Berne and Lausanne. As well as working together in constructing the fibre-optic network, the two partners are actively committed to establishing a single standard for in-house cabling in residential and non-residential properties. They are looking in particular to jointly define the types of connectors and optical fibres to be used so that homeowners and electricians associations can be given clear installation recommendations.
Customers profit from competition
Jacqueline Müller, mayor of Pfyn, is very positive about the cooperation: "In Swisscom, we have a reliable partner. Thanks to the new fibre-optic technology, we will be able to turn the longstanding locational disadvantage due to poor cable connections into a locational advantage. The residents of Dettighofen will now be able to benefit from teleworking under the best possible conditions." End customers will receive one connection box per household, enabling them to simply switch the connector cable to change to another provider. Customers will benefit in future from attractive offerings from a range of network and service providers. Competing services will be offered over the respective optical fibres of the cooperation partners. The first offerings for residential customers and SMEs are expected to be available from 2010.
Joint construction of the network - Single standard for in-house installation
According to the agreement, the fibre-optic network in Dettighofen will be constructed by the electrical utility, Elektrizitätswerk Pfyn, and will involve laying four fibres per household, two of which will be allocated to Swisscom. This will be the first time that Swisscom will cooperate in FTTH expansion with a more rural municipality. In making the move, the telecoms provider is underlining its fibre-optic commitment in locations outside the main urban centres. At the same time, it sees this pilot project as an opportunity to gain further cooperation experience in rural areas of Switzerland. Swisscom is already working with Groupe E to expand the fibre-optic network in the canton of Freiburg: the two pilot projects concern a district in the city of Freiburg and the municipality of Neyruz with a population of around 2,000. Swisscom is also laying fibre-optic cables all the way to the customer's premises in the cities of Zurich, Basel, Geneva, St Gallen, Berne and Lausanne. As well as working together in constructing the fibre-optic network, the two partners are actively committed to establishing a single standard for in-house cabling in residential and non-residential properties. They are looking in particular to jointly define the types of connectors and optical fibres to be used so that homeowners and electricians associations can be given clear installation recommendations.