Brussels, 28/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission announced on Tuesday 28 June that 13 photonics research projects, which will receive Commission funding, are being launched in the field of high-speed fibre broadband networks with the aim of developing technologies to deliver super fast internet speeds to the home in excess of 1 Gigabit per second. “I'm very happy that research on technology relevant to delivering super fast internet speeds to the homes and businesses of 500 million Europeans is taking off. Such technology could have a crucial role to play in meeting Europe's broadband needs far into the future”, said Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes.
Photonics is a strategic technology driving innovation in many sectors, such as communications (including super fast internet access). The research projects all focus on how components (e.g. transceivers, amplifiers and routers) and information technology (IT) systems can deliver speeds of 1Gigabit/second and above to the subscriber at home while reducing the operational cost for ultra-fast broadband. The objective is, therefore, to develop technology to give customers a faster service at no extra cost. The projects were jointly selected in 2010 by the European Commission, Austria, Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom and Israel, who are together paying a total of €22.3 million towards them. The Commission contributes one third of the funding of the projects and national funding agencies cover the rest. The joint approach will enable participating countries to develop high speed optical broadband networks much faster, as joint efforts can generate a critical mass for market-uptake more efficiently. Ultra-fast broadband access is becoming increasingly important in Europe as demand for bandwidth-hungry services multiplies, the Commission points out. I.L./transl.rt)