Fibre to the Distribution Point – the new nbn technology
The iiNet experts have been keeping people in the loop about everything they need to know about the nation’s superfast network, the nbn™, and the multi-technology mix (MTM) that is going to bring it to them. That’s why we’re here to let you know that a great new technology could be thrown into the mix for many lucky residents.
Fibre to the Distribution Point or FTTdp is the new technology which could be a game-changer in delivering fast and reliable connections to homes and businesses around Australia. nbn™ have announced a field trial of the technology is due to commence in April. So what exactly is FTTdp, and what benefits will it bring to the Australian people? Well, we’ve got the answers for you.
What is FTTdp?
FTTdp is similar to Fibre to the Node technology in which nbn™ fibre runs from the nbn™ network to point of interconnect and then terminates at cabinet/node near the group of premises it will be servicing, and then utilises the existing copper network to connect each individual premises. However, for FTTdp, instead of a node in your street, FTTdp delivers fibre to a “distribution point unit” or DPU near your premises before connecting via the copper network to your residence.
The benefits of an FTTdp connection
So you’re probably wondering how delivering fibre to a DPU differs from delivering it to a Node. It relies less on the copper network than FTTN, with only 10 to 200m of copper connection in an FTTdp connection, compared to up to 1km of copper in an FTTN connection, pushing the nbn™ fibre closer to your premises. Even better, because the length of copper network it requires is so short, nbn™ can look at employing G.fast technology: a technology which has been trialled in other countries, which works with 400m of copper or less and uses higher frequencies than VDSL2 technology to achieve even higher speeds.
Who gets it?
nbn™ chief executive Bill Morrow expects 300k premises which were going to receive FTTN will be switched to FTTdp. Trials of the technology are due to begin sometime next month in Sydney, Melbourne and other capital cities. If it is a success, FTTdp could start being rolled out in 2017. It’s looking to be used largely in areas with lower population density or areas not suitable for FTTN or FTTP and where HFC is not available.
To see where your exact location stands in the nbn™ rollout process, check out the nbn™ Coverage Checker. This will let you pinpoint exactly where sites have been built or are in stages of preparation or construction. Make sure to register your interest on the nbn™ Wait List and check out iinet’s nbn™ plans to be ready to roll when the nbn™ hits your neighbourhood.
79 comments
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Nice explanation. But I fear the statement about “less congestion” is incorrect. Particularly if iinet is the ISP.
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My suburb of supposedly getting HFC, will HFC be slower less reliable than this new FTTdp? The internet is my livelihood, but living in Australia makes that very difficult, I feel very uneasy not knowing how reliable my future internet connection will be.
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technicians that have come to this house have stated that the copper wire system is in extremely poor condition and is on the point of collapse. Therefore, this revised scheme is as strong as its weakest link – and yet another failure by this government. Put a system in and let it work.
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I report fact- there is no need for moderation.
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All I hear is “super fast broadband “. Sunce connecting to the NBN FTTN I have had speeds as fast as 0.83 Mb/s. Wow! I got faster than that on dial-up. Average speed between 4pm & 8 pm is 4Mb/s. I don’t know why they call it Superfast. I certainly don’t get it. I have never been more disappointed with anything that I can remember.
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All lovely stuff but the NBN has been delivered to streets 500m from my place and my planned connection is still over 2 yrs ago and mine is crap ……. it has taken more than 24 hrs trying to download a video editor from Cyberlink …. all these promises and politicians and now a DD election …. beginning to doubt I’ll see NBN in my lifetime.
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I believe Cowra 2794 will be one of the last connected to the NBN, Can you tell us when it will be, and what do we do in the meanwhile?
Regards Fred
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Why have 55 houses in Childers QLD 4660 been activated with wireless NBN and the rest of the town have to wait till 2020
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Sorry for asking (again), but what happens with the lovely RIM at the end of my street? Also, why wont the NBN Co release a project schedule? As a taxpayer funded project this should be released.
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This will just be another stuffup by the NBN and telstra.
Just like the people in Bomaderry nsw have been told for the last 5 weeks by the NBN you are ready to conect contact your internet provider only to be told by provider it is not working yet just like Malcolm Turnbull not working at all. -
Sounds like a good sysyem, it wouldnt take much to beat the present wireless system we have at Merriwa in NSW Upper Hunter.Ever since we have gone onto this system we have gone backwards toward the old ” Dial-Up”.
Come on and pick the game up. -
I am not sure if fibre is being delivered with in 150 metres of a home, how it could be more sensible than bringing it all the way to the premise. The cost of getting fibre under the ground depending on the conduit infrastructure available is the most expensive component of the fibre roll out, so I am not sure how FTTdp is going to be cheaper than FTTN. If they are considering FTTdp. they can as well provide fibre to the premise rather than spending more money down the track.
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How come your coverage checker does not list a nbn installation due date, when Telstra has informed me that it will go live at my address 26 June 2016. Is iiNet information lacking?
Please update and give me a clearer picture. -
My landline internet connection is so bad I have to use my mobile phone to get decent network speed for what I need
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the nbn speed is not up to scratch it is only 22nd position this is not good enough for a country like Australia it will hold us back
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Was getting excited until i read your line it’ll be mostly for rural areas.
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We were told in 2010 by Telstra to be getting the NBN by the end of 2013 and we are still waiting 6 years late.I believe my chooks will grow a new set of teeth by the time we get it.
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I had this at my house in England ten years ago so why experiment when the technology is already proved.
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We have just been connected to the NBN FTTN, will we have change over to the new system shortly?
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I live in country WA and I cant see a cable being layed out to my country town.So my question is how will my town receive the NBN.
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“Could be a game changer”????? That’s a bit wishy washy.
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How can I pay to have node put in my street as I can not even get broadband 4 kms out of town?
Neil
12 Ringwood road Medowie NSW 2318 -
Is the FTTdp connection available for residents of The Citadel, Umina Beach 2257?
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I live in Pearsall and can’t wait until this suburb gets a decent broadband service. My ADSL2 service is not cheap and and is slow by comparison to friends in other areas so I can’t wait!
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The first page refers to a “New Development Fee”, but the referenced article does not mention any new fee. The article is written in the breathless, exclamation mark-riddles tone of a press release from nbn, when it should be a more sober analysis by your nbn team of what nbn has announced.
The article says that the new technology works best for 150 m. of copper or less and then says that it would be suitable for rural properties with long drives; my casual observation is that most rural drives are much longer than 150 m.
I appreciate iinet’s attempts to keep me up to date (and I need all the help I can get) but some careful proof reading and some more thought about the tone of the articles might improve your communications.
I write as a big fan of iinet, having been with you for many years, so please take my remarks as constructive criticism. -
Yeah sure, Internet in my area is so disgusting it’s actually a joke we get charged for it.
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Unless they put in new copper wire to the household the problems will still be the same. Our copper wire was laid underground approx 40 years ago, after a rain event our phone line goes crackly and lots of other noise on the line. The technician when arrives has about 3 street pits to check to find issue and then try to find spare pair of good lines to correct fault.
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When will our suburb McKellar be connected
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NBN have already installed their equipment in my Unit.What is the delay now as I was under the impression that my connection was imminent
Regards Francis Crane -
Any variation of the original proposal made by the Labour Government is NOT an improvement. The only word we should be aware of is “cost effective”.
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If we’re unfortunate enough to have FTTN used, during the FTTdp trial, is it likely that conventions to FTTdp will take place.
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Oops. That was meant to read conversions not conventions.
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Turnbull’s fraudband is still fraudband as long as copper wire is involved,it costing more taking longer and all the BS in the world wont change the fact we are being duped about it.
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Does it matter what technology they come up with when it has been widely reported that NBN Co will run out of Gov financing next year. So far there has been no mention, to my knowledge, of private investment contracts for the continued construction of the network.
I am very frustrated with the whole NBN as I was originally due to get FTTP in 2014 then we had the Liberal Party elected (I voted Labour) and it all got changed with the 12 month delay that ensued while they did study after study. Then the 3 year plan that said construction of FTTN would start in my area in Feb 2016 and now I find out through the march roll out map that large chunks of my area have been excluded for some unknown reason and no further information is available. So I have to assume that if we are not on the next update, in JUne, we will probably miss out all together as after the election anything could happen. -
Will it cost much more per month for a pensioner. I have been told by someone it costs more but for them no extra speed.
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I already have NBN connected and it is ALL optical fibre. I saw the connection being made. NO COPPER. It is no better than the previous ADSL in terms of speed. In fact rather slow for download. Not what I expected at all.
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Very frustrating only 12 Km from our exchange
and unable to connect , stuck with mobile
wireless service , still 3rd world internet and very very slow. I think Perth is getting a raw deal with it’s connection program -
An updated list of when NBN is going to be at my address would be good. There is not much point in telling people where it is already installed if it is not in their street. Most people want to know when they might get it and if they can’t find this out this just leads to frustration.
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If you had continued with the original plan started by the Labor Party we wouldn’t have all these extra costs that keep creeping in. Try to design a horse with a committee and you will get a camel !!!
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Does this mean my suburb wich was scehduled to start NBN deployment in late 2016 will once again be delayed and slugged with $300 for eachconnection?
Not bad, for something that was supposed to be in place already when we bought the house 10 years ago!
But then again, it’s the NBN: Not Building Networks!… -
I am excited about when we receive the new technology as I believe because it’s going to take so long to get to Beechboro WA , that it will be so advanced that even “Trekkies” will be blown away . ( Between 50 to 100 years from now )
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Your site tells me that NBN is available at my premises whereas, the coverage map tells ne different. For your info
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I am confused. Re NBN FTTdp in your email update: Under “Who Gets It?” you stated that trials were about to start in Sydney, Melbourne etc, then you went on to say – in the same paragraph! – that it was looking to be used largely in rural areas in premises with long driveways. Why is the installing company testing technology they want to use in rural areas in cities?
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My NBN is soo much slower than Broadband. What a waste of time. Wish I had never changed. Very dissatisfied
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At the moment my internet is very slow, I don’t really comment what is better.
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This sucks you lot and the LNP have screwed up what was meant to be a good project and now it is 3rd rate, in the developed world.
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We live in Bundaberg and switched from ADSL2 to NBN and have noticed a quicker email service but buffering is still an issue when viewing videos on Youtube. The buffering is comparable to what we had on ADSL2 so NBN is not buffering free regardless of what the advertisement by iinet claim.
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It’s a spoof right, or It sounds to me like another bandaid on the other band aids that is the botched laughable Turnbull NBN. I’m waiting for the really,really new one, the FTTR (fiber to the ridiculous )
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I still do not like the thought of ANY COPPER wiring being used, because most of it is 80 to 100 years old and frail.
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For people who are suppose to be in the KNOW.. Why am I getting sent this STUFF when the GREAT NBN hasnt even started in my area.
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no sign of NBN here at Stirling SA 5152
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we are told we will not receive the NBN in my area the West Coast of Tasmania we are going to get Satalite which i have had in the past and it dose not work in our area as when it rains and clouds over you can kiss goodby to your connection i will stay on copper ADSL2 IF I CAN OTHERWISE I WONT HAVE IT.
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Im sick of telstra. When can IInet install @ 16 Adlington Way , The vines?
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Will this have a copper connection to the home with the DC volts to make the old phone viable without individual DC supplies for emergency service connections? Be careful you are not making a monster!
Regards, TJJ -
Given that we were promised FULL FTTP before Turncoat & his farcical fraudband sold out to the Murdochracy, they can jam it. Instead of the gB speeds we were promised, we’re capped at a snails pace compared to Pakistan, FFS! It’s either full-fibre, or nothing.
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We in Forster Tuncurry don’t seem able to get an idea when we can expect the NBN to come to us. Taree 35 Kms. away has it but I suspect it is following the highway and not coming around the lakes to us.
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I HAVE ALREADY REGISTERED WITH YOU GUYS[iiNET]FOR BUSINESS NBN; AND I CURRENTLY HAVE AN ULTIMATE PLAN. DO I HAVE TO DO ANYTHING ELSE NOW?
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Oh, whoopee doo!
I live in one of Sydney’s suburbs, not even one of the outer ones, and still nowhere near being connected up to the NBN. Oh, sorry, “nbn™”. How symbolic that they changed their name to all lower case but I digress.
The FTTdp indeed appears to be better but instead of doing a full switch to that technology instead of FTTN, they say it will be limited to only some premises.
Not that Labor was perfect but the Coalition came in with some pretty big promises for nbn but only managed to increase the cost of the roll out, do it slower and with inferior technology. So where are the benefits exactly, for the public? The word incompetence springs to mind. -
Thanks for the good news on this. Still I have to wait until 2018.
Cheers
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NBN = unicorn?
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In Greenwood WA we can’t get additional telephone lines to our house, both providers i spoke to said there were no new ports available or the lines are that old/poor condition that they are not increasing the pressure on the current system. We used to have a second line. I hope the copper lines are still suitable for FTTdp use. I have an old Telstra Dial-before-you-dig info which indicates we have Optic Fibre running down our street – but everyone says we don’t. Why can’t we connect to that? seems more feasible with FTTdp? Thanks for the update, it sounds like better technology and we could be connected quicker – yeah.
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there is a fibre optic cable runs in front of my house but you want to offer FTTN no thanks
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Hopefully FTTdp will be used when our location is commenced in last quarter of 2016. Cannot wait for it to happen after experience of a friend just connected to FTTN who is getting approx. 23.5 Mbps on his 25 Mbps paid for service and has virtually doubled the speed of his old ADSL 2+ service .
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Alas,
Another incompetent decision by those who have no clue about networks and infrastructure. The only way to do this properly and once is to lay fibre — like they did with copper oh so many years ago.
What another complete waste of time, effort and money.
Has any estimate of the speed of FTTN system been given, During my time as a Telecom Tech the copper network would be flat out delivering equivalent of a 64 K dial up Modem, Note even the speed of the Fibre to building for Units is down 1000% on what the NBN was designed for, Thanks’ to Tony’s watered down version