Evaluation of FSO and FTTH technologies using techno-economic and risk analysis

摘要

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to carry out a techno-economic evaluation of the business prospects of Free Space Optical (FSO) technology as an alternative last mile solution. Design/methodology/approach - The analysis is based on the results from the TONIC tool that takes into account parameters such as network topology area characteristics, service demand, price. evolution forecasting and calculates several economic figures-of-merits. Furthermore in order to analyze market and technologies uncertainties a thorough risk analysis has been performed. Findings - The results reveal that FSO technology could provide a viable alternative in cases where the existing duct availability is limited especially compared to the Fiber-to-the-Home (FFTH) solutions. Originality/value - This paper studies two alternative last mile broadband technologies FSO and FTTH.