The Fibre to the Home (FTTH) Council MENA is pleased to announce the launch of the 7th Edition of FTTH Council MENA Conference taking place from 9th -11th November 2015 at Grand Hyatt, Muscat, under the patronage of H.E Dr. Ahmed Al Futaisi, Minister of Transport and Communications-Oman.
Supported by Oman Broadband Company (OBC) as Host Partner; and Omantel, Ericsson & Prysmian Group as Gold Sponsors, the event will be held under the theme “FTTH, The Edge of a Brighter Tomorrow” and will witness the presence of The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) & the Information Technology Authority (ITA) among other leading representatives of the ICT industry. “Better communication services & networking solutions are fundamental in creating the edge of a better tomorrow.
The adoption of FTTH technology resulting in high speed internet services as a result of high speed connection networks can be realised through well-developed infrastructures & national broadband strategies. In line with these requirements, the FTTH Council MENA recognises Oman as a significant market for fibre to home and businesses” says Dr. Suleiman Al-Hedaithy, Chairman of FTTH Council MENA.
The Omani government’s interest in the country’s broadband sector is indicated by its approval of the new national broadband strategy in 2013 and support in providing wider communication services at different governorates by 2020. It is estimated that around 90% of the Governorate of Muscat and 35% of the other governorates outside Muscat will be covered by optic fibre, satellites & wire communications by 2020 and every building & village across Oman will be connected to the national broadband infrastructure by 2040.
“The government has put a big investment for the upcoming 10 years in this sector. With the intention of opening doors for wider communication services in Oman, OBC is currently focusing on the deployment of fibre optics in the main governorates of the Sultanate. Optic fibre deployment plans are already underway in the Governorates of Muscat & Musandam, and soon to be implemented in the Governorate. OBC’s current and upcoming plans for optic fibre deployment will be shared at the FTTH Council MENA Conference” says Eng. Said Al-Mandhari, CEO of OBC.
Pre-Conference Workshops held on 9th November 2015 will be presented by reputed speakers from the field who will touch upon FTTH business & smart solutions through live interactive sessions, including a Mini-MBA in Fibre-to-the Home and Next Generation Access. To commemorate the 7th Edition of the FTTH MENA 2015 Conference in Oman,the FTTH Council MENA is also organising the Oman Roadshow to explore the fibre infrastructure of Muscat on 9th November 2015 at 2pm at the venue after the morning workshop.
The FTTH Conference taking place from 10-11th November 2015 will open the floor for discussions regarding Oman’s national broadband strategies and explore benefits, challenges and efficient strategies to deploy ultra-fast broadband to homes and business within the region. In the world of telecoms, we often focus on the underlying technology and forget that what matters to subscribers are the services.
In response to this an area is dedicated to the “World of Applications” to highlight the ways in which fibre to the home, and the increased speeds it can deliver, enables new services for both residential and business subscribers. A special session will take place on the first day of the conference in the dedicated area for applications demonstration and discussion. The aim is to describe and highlight applications supported by the fibre optic ‘nervous system’ of a telecoms network and the applications could cover any area from the government to the health such as smart sensors, access control, smart payments, security etc.
