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.
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"Because of the increased bandwidth and installation of Tesseractiv, I have decided to re-sign my lease for another year." ing from 300 Mbps to 10 Gbps, can handle even the largest packet sizes. • A content delivery network that stores the most popular Internet con- tent in Pavlov Media's data centers around the country. Tis data, des- ignated as "on-net content," is deliv- ered at the maximum speed possible given the equipment and circuits. • Content store-and-forward accelera- tion to reduce expected latency. • A pricing model that differentiates between on-net and off-net content. Te Grove Waco has been provi- sioned to deliver 100 Mbps on-net speeds and 20 Mbps off-net speeds at its initial deployment. University coursework can be stored on the system for the fastest possible and most reliable delivery. SERVICES Services offered on the network: High- speed Internet access (100 Mbps for on-net traffic, 20 Mbps for off-net), video and common-area wireless Provider choice: Tis is a bulk property. All students receive Internet service as part of their residency and cannot choose among multiple service pro- viders. Technical support: Te service provider provides all support for the residents and staff at the property. BUSINESS Which parts of the network are owned by the service provider, and which parts are owned by the property owner? Te property owner owns the on-prop- erty delivery network, and the ser- vice provider owns the off-property infrastructure that enables the Tes- seractiv service. Is there a marketing agreement with the property owner? Tere is no market- ing agreement. Pavlov Media is the sole bulk service provider. What services does the bulk-service agree- ment include? Can residents upgrade from the bulk services? Both data and video are provided as bulk services, with no upgrade. Is there any evidence that the network helps to attract residents, retain resi- dents, increase property values, etc. Yes – here's a great testimonial from a resident: "After the bandwidth upgrade came, the Internet was greatly im- proved to speeds of 16 Mbps down- load and 4 Mpbs upload. Ten, shortly after that, we got notifica- tion that Pavlov was installing Tes- seractiv. Tesseractiv actually allows me to get almost 100 Mbps speed on certain websites. Tis is the fast- est speed I have ever experienced in a residential setting. Because of the increased bandwidth and installa- tion of Tesseractiv, I have decided to re-sign my lease for another year, as I am extremely pleased with the Inter- net at Grove Waco." TECHNOLOGY Broadband architecture: Fiber to the building Where is the fiber terminated? Te fiber runs from the primary communica- tions room in the clubhouse to the individual communications rooms in each building. Medium used to deliver signals to each unit: Cat 5e cables Methods for running cables between build- ings, vertically within buildings, hori- zontally within buildings? Standard hub-and-spoke 1 Gbps fiber network between the clubhouse and the resi- dential buildings. Each building has Cat 5e runs to the unit. Te build- ing has 1 Gbps Ethernet to the club- house with 100 Mbps Ethernet-to- the-unit cables. Tese connections would be upgradable to 1 Gbps with new Ethernet switches. LESSONS LEARNED What was the biggest challenge? Te big- gest challenge was explaining the Tesseractiv product to residents and helping them understand the differ- ence in Internet speed. Pavlov and Campus Crest partnered to design marketing materials and giveaways to distribute to residents. Tey also hosted a pizza party where residents could stop by and ask questions of Pavlov representatives. What was the biggest success? Te resi- dents' reaction to the improvement in Internet speed. College students are some of the largest consumers of bandwidth, and with the increase in technology on campus and the growth of online classes, keeping up with their demand is critical. Campus Crest is always looking for innovative and economical ways to meet that demand, and Tesseractiv enabled us to be successful in Waco. If the building was already occupied at the time of the deployment, what was done – and what could have been done better – to limit disruption? Tere was absolutely no disruption. What feedback does the leasing/sales office get from residents/guests? Residents are extremely pleased with the increase in speed, and many have provided that feedback personally to the man- agement staff on-site. Residents are downloading full-length movies in 20 minutes now, a huge improvement in speed. Marketing this difference to residents and prospective residents has positively impacted renewals and new lease signings, as well as given Te Grove Waco a competitive ad- vantage in the marketplace. What should other owners consider before they get started on a similar deploy- ment? Other owners should consider how important the end-user experi- ence is. If they decide it is important, they should consider using Tesserac- tiv to blow the competition away. Y 22 | BROADBAND COMMUNITIES | www.broadbandcommunities.com | OCTOBER 2012