BROADBAND COMMUNITIES is the leading source of information on digital and broadband technologies for buildings and communities. Our editorial aims to accelerate the deployment of Fiber-To-The-Home and Fiber-To-The-Premises.
Issue link: https://bbcmag.epubxp.com/i/598890
2 | BROADBAND COMMUNITIES | www.broadbandcommunities.com | OCTOBER 2015 EDITOR'S NOTE Broadband Communities (ISSN 0745-8711) (USPS 679-050) (Publication Mail Agreement #1271091) is published 7 times a year at a rate of $24 per year by Broadband Properties LLC, 1909 Avenue G, Rosenberg, TX 77471. Periodical postage paid at Rosenberg, TX, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Broadband Communities, PO Box 303, Congers, NY 10920-9852. CANADA POST: Publications Mail Agreement #40612608. Canada Returns to be sent to Bleuchip International, PO Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2. Copyright © 2015 Broadband Properties LLC. All rights reserved. CEO Barbara DeGarmo / barbara@bbcmag.com PU B LISH ER Nancy McCain / nancym@bbcmag.com E D I T O R - I N - C H I E F Masha Zager / masha@bbcmag.com E D I T O R -AT- L A R G E Steven S. Ross / steve@bbcmag.com ADV ER T ISI N G SALE S A CCO U N T E X E C U T I V E Irene Prescott / irene@bbcmag.com E V E N T S CO O R D I N AT O R Dennise Argil / dennise@bbcmag.com CO M M U N I T Y N E W S E D I T O R Marianne Cotter / marianne@bbcmag.com D E SI G N & PR O D U C T I O N Karry Thomas CO N T R I B U T O R S David Daugherty, Korcett Holdings Inc. Heather Burnett Gold, FTTH Council, NA Joanne Hovis, CTC Technology & Energy W. James MacNaughton, Esq. Christopher Mitchell, Institute for Local Self-Reliance Henry Pye, RealPage, Inc. Bryan Rader, Bandwidth Consulting, LLC Craig Settles, Gigabit Nation Robert L. Vogelsang, Broadband Communities Magazine B R OA D BA N D P R O P E R T I E S L LC CEO Barbara DeGarmo V I CE PR E SI D EN T, B USI N E SS & O PER AT I O N S Nancy McCain CHAI R M AN O F T H E B OAR D Robert L. Vogelsang V I CE CHAI R M AN The Hon. Hilda Gay Legg B USI N E SS & ED I TO R IAL O FFI CE B R OAD BAN D PR O PER T I E S LLC 19 0 9 Ave nu e G • R o s e n b e r g , T X 77471 281. 3 42 .9 655 • Fa x 281. 3 42 .1158 w w w. b r o a d b a n d co m m u n i t i e s . co m masha@bbcmag.com M ultifamily housing starts are going up, up, up. At the current dizzying pace, nearly half a million units will be added this year in the United States. Why? Baby boomers are beginning to retire and downsize. Millennials, an equally large cohort (depending on how they're counted), are moving out on their own, but, saddled with student debt, they can't aford houses. Single-family homebuilding is constrained by land and labor shortages, economists say. To attract desirable residents to all these multifamily units, developers and owners rely on amenities, and technology amenities ofer the most bang for the buck. Survey after survey confrms that broadband is a top priority for apartment dwellers. Not just any broadband, but good broadband. Tis month, I spent an inordinate amount of time reading reviews on websites such as Yelp and DSLReports.com. I saw dozens of comments like these: • Never move into a building where [provider name] is the ISP. • From now on, I' ll only live in buildings served by [provider name]. Exclusive contracts between building owners and poor providers are guaranteed to drive these reviewers into fts of rage. What makes residents happy with broadband? Speed is important, but absolute speed isn't everything. Consistency is far more important. If a resident counts on being able to work from home (whether that requires 10 Mbps or 100 Mbps), she is upset when she has to work at the cofee shop – or worse, miss a day of work. If a resident invites friends over for a Netfix binge- watching party, he needs to know the movies will stream. Beyond consistency, residents – at least those who share their opinions online – value prompt setup and installation, prompt problem resolution and knowledgeable tech support staf. Tey don't like making multiple phone calls to get problems resolved, and they object to waiting at home for technicians who never show up. Fortunately, good solutions are now available to deliver the kind of broadband service that residents love. Fiber to the building yields solid, reliable bandwidth, and there are several excellent methods to distribute fber bandwidth within an apartment community. Fiber to the unit is the best and most future proof, but with appropriate inside wiring and equipment, Ethernet, DOCSIS 3.x, G.fast and newer wireless technologies can all provide service that will keep residents happy today. Proper design, engineering and service management are critical, and back-ofce software is nearly as important (maybe more important) because it enables fast, error-free provisioning and remote diagnosis and problem resolution. BroadBand Communities ' Top 100 MDU Technology Providers, on page 26 of this issue, lists companies that ofer all these products and services. v Resident Satisfaction 101 Multifamily property owners must provide good, reliable broadband service – and good customer service – to attract and retain residents.