Swisscom: Chur receives fiber optic network
Swisscom is continuing to expand its fiber-optic network in eastern Switzerland. By 2016, fiber-optic cables will be installed throughout Chur, reaching homes and businesses.
According to the press release, construction activities will begin in March 2012 in the Masans district, followed by the Loequartier and Wiesental areas. In total, Swisscom will connect all 20,000 homes and businesses in Chur to the fast network of the future. The construction of a fiber optic network is necessary in order to be able to meet the bandwidth requirements of companies and private households, i.e. the desire for even faster Internet access, in the future. Swisscom is building the fiber optic network on its own, but is laying at least four fibers per home and business. The expansion in Chur will take place in Swisscom's existing cable infrastructure whenever possible. Thanks to non-discriminatory access, other providers will also have access to the fiber optic network. The first customers in Chur are expected to be able to receive fiber-based services in the second half of 2012.
In autumn 2008, Swisscom began rolling out fiber optics to homes and businesses, initially in the cities of Basel, Geneva and Zurich. Swisscom is now building FTTH in over 30 locations. By the end of September 2011, 320,000 homes and businesses throughout Switzerland had been connected with fiber optics down to the basement. The aim is to connect one million households by the end of 2015 - this corresponds to around a third of the Swiss population. Swisscom is investing around 2 billion Swiss francs in this project.
