Fastweb launches live video over ADSL broadcast services

10 September 2003 London/Milan/Genoa -- FastWeb, Italy's main alternative fixed broadband telecom operator, has become the first operator in the world to introduce live broadcast video services over Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL).

It selected Marconi Corp's Access Hub, the Multi-Service Access Node (MSAN), to support the new service, which is available via television sets to customers in Rome, Naples and Genoa. FastWeb's ADSL subscribers can have access to all TV services available over optical fibre, and also to the live broadcast of the Italian Football League matches.

FastWeb provides its business and residential customers in the main Italian cities (Milan, Rome, Genoa, Turin, Naples, Bologna and Reggio Emilia) with innovative telecommunications services over optical fibre and ADSL, by offering an integrated system for the simultaneous use of telephony, high-speed Internet connection (up to 10 Mbit/s for optical fibre and up to 4 Mbit/s for ADSL) and video.

FastWeb's ADSL subscribers now have access to all broadcast TV services already available over optical fibre. They can receive, in digital format, the main terrestrial and satellite TV channels such as RAI, Mediaset, La7, BBC World, Bloomberg, CNN, Cartoon Network, RAINews 24 and RAISport, as well as over 3,500 titles, which are available "On Demand"

Following the recent merger between Stream and Tele+, the two Italian satellite TV broadcasters, FastWeb's can now add the live broadcast, on the e.BisMedia channel, of all Sky Italia material, including football matches. Overall, over 120 live channels are transmitted over optical fibre and ADSL.

The Marconi Access Hub provides FastWeb with advanced functions that allow it to provide high-quality video on demand and multicast services. FastWeb's full video over ADSL solution consists of the Marconi Access Hub AXH2500E with IP multicast functionality. Access Hub's multicasting technology avoids bandwidth wastage in the core network by allowing it to replicate a single video feed into multiple streams, one for each ADSL subscriber.

"We have launched the new video over ADSL services by taking the most ambitious challenge: football supporters are among the most demanding video subscribers and, as a consequence, they require extremely high broadcast quality," said Guido Garrone, FastWeb's CTO.

"Marconi's Access Hub gives us the multicasting technology to deliver interactive video coverage of live events to our ADSL customers in Rome, Genoa and Naples efficiently, with minimum impact on our core network. With the Access Hub's multicasting technology, combined with high-speed Internet access, we have created an interactive offer that will satisfy even the most passionate football supporters."

Martin Harriman, Chief Marketing officer, Marconi Corporation, said: "Sport has a proven track record in promoting the uptake of new media services and I am sure FastWeb's football coverage will be as much of a success for ADSL as it was for satellite in the 1990s and early 2000s. FastWeb's new video service shows what can be achieved by taking broadband beyond simple internet services."