NEPAL TELECOM to demonstrate FTTH service on Feb 5

Nepal Telecom (NT) is demonstrating its new project Fiber to the Home (FTTH) at its annual day celebration on February 5.

The state-owned telco is introducing the service to provide its customers the fastest Internet and other value added services including voice and television. It plans to launch the service to general public within mid-April.

Shyam Sundar Yadav, director of NT´s PSTN Directorate, said NT was installing equipment in 10 different places across the country. “We are planning to launch the fiber cable service in the areas under Sundhara, Chhauni, Naxal, Patan and Chabahil exchanges inside the Valley and areas under Biratnagar, Birgunj, Bharatpur, Butwal and Pokhara exchange outside the valley in the first phase,” Yadav said, adding that they were working to launch the service in these areas within mid-April.
 

NT is planning to slowly replace copper wires with optical fibers and expand the service across the country once it covers all the major cities. As part of the FTTH project, NT has already completed the installation of optical fiber links to the exchanges. According to NT officials, customers using the new service will be able to enjoy voice, high speed data and television through a single cable. However, NT will offer only the high speed Internet and voice services as it does not hold cable TV license. Yadav said pilot project for FTTH conducted in Durbar Marg, Kamaladi and Thamel area in July last year was successful and that NT was currently working on the billing part. Usually, FTTH can provide data at the speed of 100 Mbps. NT, however, is yet to fix the data limit. At present, Internet service providers (ISP´s) are providing top speed of 15 Mbps only. “We are working out tariff and installation charges for the new service,” Guna Keshari Pradhan, spokesperson of NT, said, adding that the service will be launched once the tariff and installation charges are approved.
Published on 2014-01-21 23:59:31(Repubilca Online)