City Telecom’s Hong Kong Broadband Network (HKBN) is using Alcatel-Lucent’s gigabit passive optical network (GPON) gear to launch a symmetric 1 Gbps broadband services offering for residents. Hold on! The company will retail the service to consumers for $26 per month (that’s US$26). It calls it “the world’s best value for money broadband deal.”
Hong Kong Broadband Network said the demand for bandwidth in Hong Kong is growing at an exponential rate. Drivers include cloud computing applications and high-definition, interactive multimedia services such as HD IPTV and online gaming. Residential broadband penetration in Hong Kong is 81.4%, amongst the highest in the world, according to the Office of the Telecommunications Authority in Hong Kong.
HKBN CTO Ivan Tam said, “Alcatel-Lucent’s GPON solution enables us to offer affordable broadband services on a mass-market scale, while readying our network for future demands — driven by super high-definition and 3D interactive multimedia applications.”
HKBN, which calls Hong Kong “a global fiber oasis,” said it’s the first in Hong Kong to provide symmetric 100 Mbps and 1 Gbps broadband services to residences. HKBN and Alcatel-Lucent said they have been working together since 2007 to deploy the gigabit passive optical network (GPON) solution.