Alcatel helps Vermont Telephone expand services

Alcatel-Lucent and Vermont Telephone Company have plans to expand the availability of broadband services such as IPTV and video-on-demand to subscribers in VTel’s service territory in southern Vermont.

The deployment by Alcatel-Lucent of the 100G optical transport network, fiber-optic broadband access and IPTV delivery system will help VTel address the ever-increasing demand for faster, more reliable and cost-efficient broadband business and consumer services. These services will now be available in areas where broadband connections have historically been limited due to Vermont’s rugged terrain and widely distributed, largely rural population.
With funding through 2009′s broadband stimulus, VTel is bridging the technological gap in Vermont. The carrier plans to deliver video and high-speed Internet services to both residences and businesses at speeds of up to one gigabit per second.

This project will dramatically increase connectivity in VTel’s service area, with the goal of helping to increase consumer broadband access and boost economic growth, stimulate job creation, and strengthen education, public safety, and healthcare delivery. The project also expands and strengthens VTel’s existing 1,000 mile four-state optical fiber network from Vermont with connections to New York City, Boston, and Montreal, which already serves some of the data users in the northeast. 

“In today’s society, if you do not have access to high-speed Internet, you have limited accessibility to educational, business and employment opportunities,” said Justin Robinson, VTel president.

Robert Vrij, president of Alcatel-Lucent’s Americas Region and head of Alcatel-Lucent’s strategic alliances, said: “High-definition video and other broadband services are driving up the volume of data being transported on networks today. The introduction of 100G with VTel will offer a tremendous boost to their capabilities and in a very cost effective way.”