First Mile Access Networks and Enabling Technologies

Technologies Deployed in Access Networks

As mentioned before, two main technological classifications can be seen in access telco networks: wired and wireless technologies.

Wired networks generally mean a physical connection to the end user, whereas wireless networks mean an absence of such a physical connection. At the time of this writing, the technological classifications of wired networks are as follows:

• DSL

• Coaxial cable

• Fiber (PON and coarse WDM [CWDM])

• Copper (for example, Ethernet)

• Power-line communication

In the wireless domain, the following three technological innovations were seen as key attributes to access networking:

• WiFi

• Basic cellular technology

• Infrared and free space optic communication

DSL Technology

In its most primitive form, DSL ...