Broadband is usually defined as a 200K or higher connection. Broadband can come in several different forms however, there are two main classifications of broadband currently available. The first type, wired broadband, is the most common and includes Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), Cable Modems, and dedicated circuits. The second type, wireless broadband, is less well known and includes Satellite and Local Multipoint Distribution System (LMDS).

Wireline Broadband

ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) currently has the largest number of users in the broadband industry. ¹ It has been around since 1984 but, the NI-1 standard was not adopted until the early 1990s. Unlike the other wireline broadband technologies, ISDN functions more like a regular telephone line than a dedicated circuit. This gives ISDN users the ability to connect to their office or Internet Service Provider (ISP) or any other ISDN location whenever needed.

ISDN comes in two basic configurations. The first is BRI (Basic Rate Interface) which consists of two 64k D channels for data and one 16K B channel for management of the circuit. The second is PRI (Primary Rate Interface) which usually consists of twenty-three 64k D channels for data and one 64k B channel for management of the circuit. However, if more bandwidth is needed multiple PRIs can be aggregated together.

One drawback of ISDN is that it has a length limitation of approximately 6000 feet from the local teleco's central office.

ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) is quickly becoming the leader in the broadband race. DSL runs over the existing twisted pair cable used to carry voice service to homes and businesses for years. Due to the high cost of installing copper cable or leasing the pairs from the Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (ILECs), DSL has become very appealing to the Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLECs) and other such telephone companies. With the onset of voice over IP the telephone companies will now be able to offer more lines and services over less copper pairs. This will reduce the overhead cost for additional lines and hopefully speed up the turn up process. Consider the following story of this small medical translation company in New York. ² Rather than lease 42 separate analog phone lines supporting one phone call each, the company could support the 42 voice channels on just six phone lines using voice over DSL. Those same lines could also be used simultaneously to carry data.

DSL comes in a wide variety of bandwidth configurations starting at 256K on up to 8M. To get the 256K connection you must be within 1500 feet of the teleco's central office. For higher speeds you would need to then be located closer to the central office.

Cable Modem access is available in limited areas and offers ³ T1 equivalent download speeds. ⁴ One of the biggest problems cable companies are running into is in the upload of information. Cable networks were designed to send data, not receive it. To fix this problem cable companies are being forced to upgrade their networks to a hybrid of fiber and copper. This is very costly and time consuming so smaller companies are often using the cable TV connections for downloads and your phone line for uploads.

Wireless Broadband

As mentioned previously the second classification of broadband is wireless. ⁵ According to Telecom Research there were fewer than 100,000 wireless broadband subscribers in 1998; by 2004 that number is expected to rise to over 4 million, or close to one-fifth of the total broadband access market. LMDS and satellite services are viewed as the two leading wireless broadband technologies.

⁶ LMDS (Local Multipoint Distribution Service), is a wireless, two-way broadband technology designed to allow network integrators and communication service providers to quickly and inexpensively bring a wide range of high-value, quality services to homes and businesses. Services using LMDS technology include high-speed Internet access, real-time multimedia file transfers, remote access to corporate local area networks, interactive video, video-on-demand, video conferencing, and telephony among other potential applications.

⁷ LMDS is a line of site technology that uses millimeterwave signals to transmit voice, video, and data signals within a 3-10 mile diameter. Which means, unfortunately, that buildings, trees, heavy rainfall, smog and numerous other objects can block the signal. Many of these obstacles can be overcome with the use of reflectors, reduced cell size and by overlapping cells for better coverage.

Due to the low cost of installation, LMDS can survive with a relatively low penetration rate. Since most of the cost is incurred as new customers are turned up as opposed to wire line installations where the cost is incurred during the installation and setup of the network itself.

With all of the length limitations on the wireline services and the line of site limitation of LMDS, satellite will still have a place in the broadband market.

Broadband Applications

As with any other technology the applications are what sell the product. Broadband has some great applications from Voice over IP to Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).

Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)

⁸ Corporations are now using VPNs for remote access, site-to-site connectivity, extranets, and intranets. What VPN does essentially is establish an encrypted connection from a remote user or site to the corporate servers and resources. This is especially useful for smaller and mid-sized companies that can not afford leased circuits from each of their smaller offices to the home office. They can use the public IP network of the Internet to bridge the gap.

How does VPN work?

1. The Client PC establishes a connection with their ISP.
2. The VPN software on the Client PC negotiates a connection with their corporate VPN server.
3. An encrypted connection is established.
4. The Client PC then has normal access to the corporate servers and resources.

As with all emerging technologies there are a few problems yet to overcome. Some of which are software interoperability, implementation costs, problems devising and/or enforcing service level agreements, increased user level support, and a lack of vendor support.

Voice over IP

An article in Network Magazine states that Voice over IP just might be the killer application needed to push broadband technology out of obscurity.

⁹ In a report published August 1999 from Cahners In-Stat Group (www.instat.com) the prediction is that voice-over-DSL services will generate $1 billion in revenue in the next year-and this is just for voice and related services such as messaging, call forwarding, and conferencing.

As I mentioned earlier in the DSL section, with the onset of voice over IP the telephone companies will be able to offer more lines over less copper pairs. This will reduce the overhead cost for additional lines and hopefully speed up the turn up process.

Why is DSL the perfect media type for offering voice? DSL for the most part runs over an ATM backbone, which offers quality of service (QoS). This quality of service is necessary for any time sensitive traffic such as voice, video, or multi-media.

Video Conferencing

Video Conferencing has been around for quite awhile but due to the high cost of implementation it has never really taken off. Now with lower cost broadband technologies emerging market watchers are expecting it to really take off.

¹⁰ Bob Rosenberg, president of Insight Research said "ISDN has always been too expensive and too difficult to get, but DSL is a technology that all of the carriers are installing and promoting, and it's going to really take off in the next year. But DSL's coattails won't carry videoconferencing to the mainstream right away. It's going to take some time for people to become familiar and comfortable with [DSL]. But once they're comfortable with the new technologies, acceptance of videoconferencing will follow."

Broadband drawbacks

One of the main drawbacks of broadband is the World Wide Web itself. In a Sm@rt Reseller article written by Rich Santalesa and David Harvey they said it best when they said:

¹¹ "The real problem with the rush to broadband is that the infrastructure simply isn't ready to support it. Face it, with few exceptions, most Web pages load just fine at the piddling 44Kbps served up by your average V.90 modem. That those same pages still churn like butter on a hot summer afternoon at 1.5Mbps really shouldn't come as much of a surprise.

If we truly want to realize a broadband future, we need to address several key infrastructural concerns."

What is the future of broadband?

¹² Right now, less than half of 1% of American households connect at broadband speeds. According to Forrester Research, however, 25% of all online households will have broadband access by 2002, with more and more to follow.