New Knoxville Telephone and Wave7 Optics to connect 1000 homes and business with FTTP optical broadband network

Fiber Optics Weekly Update, Oct 1, 2004

Wave7 Optics Inc., a supplier of point-to-multipoint Ethernet FTTP (fiber-to-the-premises) systems for residential and business services, and New Knoxville (Ohio) Telephone Company (NKT) announced a new FTTP network that will connect 1000 residential and business customers in Ft. Loramie, Ohio, by mid-2005. Goldstar Communications LLC and NKTELCO--the CLEC and video service provider business units of NKT, respectively--will deliver the complete "triple play" package of services to Ft. Loramie.

Each residential subscriber will enjoy 200 video channels (capable of IP digital as well), up to four telephone lines, and very high-speed data (Internet) services provided over Wave7's Last Mile Link (LML) system. Business customers will receive the same services, with the addition of 10/100/1000 Ethernet Base-T and similar "business class" connections.

Construction of the new network began in March of this year. All fiber has now been deployed, as an "overlay" to the existing copper lines infrastructure, and Goldstar and NKTELCO are in the process of connecting customers to the network and installing Wave7's "Last Mile Gateway" customer premises devices.

"We have evaluated all of the FTTP systems and we feel Wave7's approach is truly innovative in terms of technical superiority, deployment flexibility, initial capital outlay, scalability and operational costs," said Preston Meyer, General Manager of NKT. "I am particularly impressed how it operates off of a GigE connection and you can deploy a 'Last Mile Core' switching element in the field, anywhere we have a concentration of customers."

"New Knoxville is yet another example of how service providers are deploying state-of-the-art FTTP networks for prices that compare favorably to other forms of broadband networks," said Tom Tighe, CEO of Wave7 Optics. "However, the Last Mile Link gives them so much more in terms of network intelligence, quality of service and virtually unlimited capacity for today's and tomorrow's services."

For more information, please visit www.wave7optics.com