A while ago KPN got a stake in Reggefiber and the municipal network of Amsterdam as well numerous other municipal and/or city networks of Reggefiber.
A few days before we farewelled 2009 and welcomed spreads, austerity measures, IMF and the likes, DongEnergy, the largest power distribution grid in Denmark sold 60% of its FTTH assets to the Danish incumbent TDC.
There’s probably more in it with incumbents getting increasingly interested in under performing (?), under stress (?) FTTH infrastructures. It’s not far fetched and I believe that we are in to an increasing trend of similar acquisitions of NGA networks by incumbents in the coming years. And possibly, the largest alternative operators will follow, maybe a little too late to make a significant difference.
I see (at least) two reasons for this:
First, it’s hard to run an FTTH network, point one. Despite the fact that Kai sees OPEX a minor issue in FTTH networks, the success is not only linked to low costs, it is also about marketing effectiveness and getting the customers on board.
The second reason relates with the growing maturity of the market. When conditions are improving why build an FTTH network from scratch when there are some available for sale. You may not buy a second-hand car, but how about a light-used FTTH access network?!
This is something I am working on these weeks, so stay tune as I plan to write more about it in the future.
