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What is FTTH?

FTTH or Fiber to the Home is a technology used to deliver communication signal over optical fibre from the operator’s switching equipment to a home or business thereby replacing existing copper cables such as telephone wires and coaxial cables. This is an advanced and fast-growing method of providing higher bandwidth internet access to home consumers and businesses thereby enabling more efficient internet services. Though fibre has got speed and reliability, it is far more expensive than a standard DSL connection.

FTTH technology connects to the home directly through fibre optic cables which allows a substantial improvement in the amount of bandwidth offered to customers. Also, ongoing improvements in fibre technology are increasing the bandwidth availability without replacing the fibre. Initially, a telecom company may install fibre from the switching equipment either to the Node or right up to your home. If the fibre is installed up to the Node only, then connectivity would be provided through the existing copper wire which was already in place. This will reduce the workload of the telecom companies but at the expense of a slight reduction in speed and bandwidth. On the contrary, if the fibre is installed right up to your home, it implies higher bandwidth and speed. It also implies higher initial investment but less investment for the future.

What distinguishes optical fibre from other methods of transmission is that it uses light instead of electricity to carry a signal. It also can carry signals with higher bandwidth over long distances without any degradation. Optical fibre technology has also been used in communication networks for more than years now primarily to carry traffic from one city to another or from one country to another. The need for fibre optic cable becomes relevant in the context of the world moving towards higher bandwidth applications. For example, people are trying to upload their home movies to web pages, consumer electronics companies are introducing devices that connect televisions to the internet and the increasing popularity of high definition videos. All these applications require higher bandwidth than what is available today.

FTTH services are being rolled out across the country at prices that are competitive and affordable. In such places where consumers had little or no choice earlier concerning internet services, FTTH technology has helped to keep prices down and improve service quality. In recent years, FTTH has gained considerable popularity and growth due to the increasing demand for high-speed internet.