We all need fibre in our lives

Just as we all need fibre in our diets, so we need fibre in our lives.

So said Vodacom executive head of division for FTTX sales Strini Michael, speaking at the 6^th annual Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) Council Africa Conference in Cape Town on Wednesday.

"Apart from fast speeds, fibre-to-the-home enables users mobile control of home conveniences like lighting, alarm and irrigation settings, and a host of other aspects remotely. Fibre creates a smart home, smart living, and makes a difference to consumers' lives," said Michael.

The rollout of fibre is a critical part of Vodacom's business growth strategy. The company passes more than 25 000 homes with its fibre infrastructure, and plans to pass one million broadband fibre end-points by the end of 2020.

Vodacom executive head of the FTTH product management team Marcel Steyn emphasised the importance of customer-centricity and understanding the everyday dynamics that influence retail behaviour.

"It's only when we fully grasp the lives of the customer that we can build value propositions that address customer needs. We need to provide segmented value propositions to ensure a smart future. And smart is the future."

Unlike when ADSL was introduced, the mobile industry will want to be a major part of the customer revenue around broadband in the home market, he observed.

Fibre creates a smart home, smart living, and makes a difference to consumers' lives.

Strini Michael, Vodacom

"They have two options: to compete with the Internet service providers for connectivity, or to leverage their own key strength, owning the mobile customer. Predictably, they're likely to leverage their existing customer relationships to compete in the market.

"The mobile operators will dominate the broadband market with clear segmented propositions that play to their core strengths. For them to grow critical mass, it's logical for them to acquire customers and ISP capability. A good example of this is AT&T's Digital Life in the US."

Steyn also predicts the tougher race will be for broadband dominance in the bottom of the pyramid segment.

"The biggest pot of gold will be the ability to connect 80% of the population with the benefits of broadband to the home. To achieve this, we need to broaden our scope to include the mass customer market that today is still excluded from opportunities to access broadband.

"Conditions at the bottom of the pyramid for fixed-line networks will make it impossible to fibre-up all customers. The industry will need to find collaborative solutions for fibre, fixed wireless, WiFi and GSM components to truly address a network build - driven by a clear view of the customer."

Steyn believes the future will be smart, but that the jury is out on who will drive this transformation and how it will be achieved.