Colorful painted symbols decorate the streets with a few pies of my houses from my Albuquerque, New MexicoHouse. Arrows and light checks mark conduits hidden in water and gas. Large trucks with boring machines and large orange pipe coils are parked along the sidewalks. They are there to install fibers to GigapowerAn open access network.
When Gigapower arrives at my house, it will not be my Internet service provider. Gigapower represents a different fiber model. Here is what internet home customers should know about open access networks.
What is a free access network and how does it work?
There is a good chance that your house will be covered by one or more Internet suppliers, each with its own infrastructure – be it cable, fibers, DSL or 5G, Like my T-Mobile Home Internet. Open access networks return this concept to its head.
A network of free access fibers is installed by a company which then sells access to ISPs. This means that you can have several suppliers offering plans for your home. They use the same infrastructure but can have different prices, services and packages.
Do not be surprised if you have not heard of open access networks before. “Free access is not common,” explains Gary Bolton, president and chief executive Large strip fiber association. “It is a kind of case in the United States.”
Bolton says that the concept is more widespread in countries where the regulations and the participation of the average government of free access are common.
You are about to learn more about open access networks thanks to the ambitious plans of Gigapower to extend the fibers in previously neglected communities. “From the point of view of an operator, it is obvious because someone else has the cost of building the network,” explains Bolton.
Types of free access networks: VS Commercial Community
You will find two types of open access networks in the United States. Networks belonging to municipalities belong to cities. Private companies have commercial networks. They both work in the same way, generally with several competitive ISPs for customers.
THE Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency (Utopia fiber) is a network of fibers belonging to the community covering the houses in 21 Utah Cities, including Brigham City, Orem, Payson and Woodland Hills.
Utopia communities were not satisfied with existing internet options. They wanted fast fibers. “If outgoing operators are not willing to make the investment, then the community takes it in their hands because it needs it for economic development,” explains Bolton.
Gigapower is an example of an open access network. The company is a joint venture between the telecommunications giant AT&T and the investment company Blackrock. To Albuquerque, AT&T fiber is signed as an anchor tenant, but that still leaves room for other ISPs to potentially jump on board and compete to offer Internet of Fibers to customers.
How free access networks affect internet costs
When the ISP share the same network, they want to stand out from the crowd. This can result in a complex dance of promotions, prices and streaming or options for telephone packs. The deployment of Gigapower is still young, so we have not yet seen how it could take place in the longer term, but we can turn to utopia for indices.
With Utopia modelConsumers cover two costs. One is the monthly price paid to the FAI and the other is the fiber connection cost for utopia, which generally costs $ 30 per month. Put both together to get your total. For example, you can register in the plan of 1 GBPS of Xmission for $ 54. The addition of utopia costs brings your monthly total to around $ 85.
Bolton says that it is typical enough for Gigabit prices on a free access network. “You are starting to see that there are a lot of groupings,” says Bolton. “Suppliers generally try to find other things of value they can add to soften the agreement.” If you shop among the ISPs on a free access network, look at promotions, packages, additional modules and the reputation of the supplier’s customer service.
Scan the prices of utopia suppliers and you will not see huge oscillations at the 250 Mbps, Gigabit or 2.5 Gbit / s level levels. But there is an area where the price varies considerably. Not all ISPs offer 10 GBPS of plans, but those with prices ranging from $ 110 to $ 200 per month. This will probably not affect many customers. Here’s how to understand How much internet speed you really need.
What is the next step for open access networks
Utopia and Gigapower are two big names in open access networks, but others exist. The Public Services of Colorado Springs, for example, develop with Ting Internet as an initial anchor tenant. Other communities dispersed throughout the country – notably Ammon, Idaho and Ashland, Oregon – also have free access networks.
On the commercial side, Ubiquity dilates by emphasizing Arizona,, California,, Nebraska And Texas. Sifi networks Specialized in free access fibers on the city scale with networks under construction in California, Wisconsin,, Illinois,, Michigan And new York.
The cities that feel adopted for high speed with fast fibers will continue to envisage free access networks. Meanwhile, Gigapower’s rapid expansion could put more commercial companies in the fold. “I think it’s an excellent model and I would not be surprised if other people take advantage of it,” says Bolton.
While Gigabit speeds are common to all fiber networks, most can offer faster services to houses. Utopia, for example, goes to 10 gbit / s with certain ISPs. AT&T fiber generally offers up to 5 Gbit / s. Free access networks that come throughout the country can be extended to manage Internet demands for the future. “This is the final network for at least the next two generations,” explains Bolton.
There is hunger fiber. Albuquerque has been a city of cable and DSL for too long. Gigapower is not the only fiber player in the city. Fiber of ezee, vexus fiber and Quantum fiber Are all marked out certain parts of the city with traditional networks, but Gigapower arrives in hot.
I will notice Gigapower when he will appear in my street to install the live orange tubes to operate fibers. After that, I probably don’t think much. I will face at & t fiber like my ISP, and perhaps one day, I will compare at & t with a competitor using the same network.
In the end, what is most important to me as a customer is not the way the fiber arrives, just that it happens here. If this means that ISPs are in competition on prices and bundles on the whole line, so much the better.
Open access networks FAQ
What is a free access network?
A free access network is installed and operated by a company that rents access to ISPs. This means that several suppliers can offer plans to customers using the same fiber network.
What are the advantages of a free access network?
A free access network is a way in which a neglected community for fibers can access rapid and symmetrical symmetrical broadband services. If private companies are not willing to invest, cities can use a municipal model instead. On the commercial side, open access networks remove the burden from the installation and operation of ISPs, which can then reproduce on the network to reach customers. In addition, customers can benefit from competition between ISPs seeking to differentiate themselves through prices, customer service, advantages or packages.
Can open access networks help make internet access more affordable?
Competition between ISPs on a free access network can benefit consumers, but do not expect price wars with reduced rate. There may be slight contrasts in prices, but more important differences in telephone and video bundles or free additional modules such as streaming services. Also look for promotional offers, such as one or two months of free service for new customers.
