lunes, 1 de marzo de 2021

Broadband in a local atmosphere: the case of Granollers

Broadband is a growing issue in today’s society. It is relevant talking in all levels of life and society. It is important in terms of Welfare State, with e-health and e-learning, in the Public Administrative Sector and in E-Business. Every communication, every search, every activity embraces the Broadband Society, and furthermore, an amount of good guaranteed broadband, which means access everywhere at any time. 



It is related with the concept “always one”, which means 24/7 connectivity. If every activity needs broadband, the paper of this “new” concept englobes either general relationships and specific ones. Municipal activity is as important as general activities of the country. In this article, in collaboration with Maria Rovira, from UPF, we will focus in the case of Vallès Oriental, writing about Granollers.

Broadband in telecommunications is a high-bandwidth data transmission which moves multiple signals and traffic types. The medium used can be coaxial cable, fiber optic, radio or twisted pair. In terms of Internet access, broadband is used to refer to any high-speed Internet access and at the same time it has to be always activated and also faster than dial-up access through traditional analogue PSTN or ISDN services. This services were guaranteed and promoted due to the impact of the technology terminals added to the new communication infrastructures as for example fiber optics and the public administrative and industry initiatives. Telecommunications and Information Society State Secretary (Ministry of Science and Technology) in Spain explained the first time when this concept was presented. It took place in August 1989 in Brasilia, in the Plenary Assembly of CCITT (Consultative Committee for International Telegraphy and Telephony), that is nowadays known as International Union of Telecommunications.

CCITT: "Qualifying a service or system requiring transmission channels capable of supporting rates greater than the primary rate". These new public networks were defined by the International telecom agents as a service which has transmission channels with a higher capability than other primary access produced before. 

The CCITT had started developing Broadband project as itself beating ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network), a network entirely digital which allowed the access to itself connection to many terminals. 

The ISDN started with a small speed of 2 Mbps, but afterwards there was an improvement in terms of broadband audio. It was four times better than IDN, from 3.1 kHz to 7 KhZ, also using 64Kbps digital channels instead of a modem with a single access method. It means that then they could share and send larger files (storage). Then in 1988, the CCITT approved the technology that would be used by the future broadband ISDN; ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode). The objective was to integrate all kinds of networks and services in a general one, such as voice, content or video, guaranteeing at the same time a quality capability according to the terminal of use. It resulted from here the concept of “Broadband Society”. 

It was expanded in the 90s all over the world with different types of technologies and applications, such as mobile devices, ADSL or fibre optics. And finally, broadband networks arrived in Catalonia (it is been more than ten years now).

Private operators started to exploit broadband to citizens, but they were providing large cities and forgetting small and rural ones. Here started the problem which nowadays still exist. Spain is located in the number 13th from among a list of countries by the number of broadband Internet users (the data is form 2010). It is a list by the total number of subscribers. A single subscription can serve more than one user. Talking about countries by Internet connection speed, Spain is located in the 24th position, with an average speed of 15.5 mbps. It shows the average data transfer rate for Internet access by end users. 

The CNMC (National Market and Competition Commission) Blog published a New this January 2020 summarizing one study that they have made about a geographical analysis of broadband services and the deployment of NGA in Spain, focusing in the different municipes (data from 2018). This analysis do not present each individual municipality with their principle uses of broadband, instead of that, CNMC puts the focus in terms of population of each municipality, for example, a municipality between 1.000 and 5.000 people or between 50.000 and 100.000. 

One of the principals conclusion of this study is firstly, that Spanish municipalities with more than 10.000 inhabitants are nowadays allowed to be connected to the Internet, mainly through fiber optic, with FTTH. Contextualizing in the case we have to analyse, in Vallès Oriental there are 406.289 people, and in Granollers there are 60.981 people. In the light of the above, Granollers could be included in that strip between 10.000 and 50.000, even if it exceeds the strip a little. In terms of the different operators, it is important to say that here they also play an important role in the research. 

Movistar used to be the main operator talking about broadband, but studies have shown that other alternatives operators had an impact on these municipalities. According to the research, the number of active fiber lines reached 8.6 million in 2018 and 82% of the new accesses were installed in municipalities with more than 10,000 inhabitants. Alternative operators led the hiring service, leaving Movistar in the background. The largest increase occurred in municipalities with a population of 10,000 to 50,000 inhabitants, to the detriment of xDSL technology. 

As FTTH contracts increased, access penetration in the different Spanish municipalities also increased. The greatest penetrations were observed in Barcelona and Madrid, with penetrations of 36.3 and 32.9 accesses per 100 inhabitants respectively. In municipalities with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants, however, xDSL remained the main mode of access to broadband.

Contextualizing into Vallès Oriental, on October 23, 2013 the new Open Network node in Granollers, in Roca Umbert precinct, was put into operation. This node has been integrated into the XLS MPLS network to strengthen the trunk section between Barcelona and Girona. Granollers is one of the cities with the most broadband network. 84% of homes, offices and premises in 2015 in the capital of Vallès Oriental had the possibility to access to fiber optics. 

It was possible due to an agreement between the City Council and the telecommunications operator Jazztel for the deployment of the fiber-optic network in the city. That made Granollers one of the first cities to be widely deployed in almost all the homes of the municipality, 23,500, with the aim of providing Granollers with ultra-fast broadband Internet access. FTTH home fiber technology was chosen because it allowed better access to speed, quality and security in the services of telephony, broadband and television services, and enabled multi-device connection within the home.

Jazztel CEO in these days, José Miguel García, explained that they had chosen Granollers because of its high Internet usage and that these agreements would allow the city to have one of the most advanced telecommunications networks in the European Union. The business project of Jazztel involved an investment of 5.5 million euros to reach 23,500 homes and business. 

The implantation of the fiber optics has advanced at the same time in the industrial estates. Thanks to the deployment by Ono and Colt companies, the Palou Nord and Cal Gordi-Cal Català estates already have fiber optics. In this case, wireless broadband coverage is also added through Wimax, which has been made possible through an agreement with the Barcelona-Catalonia Circuit to use the antennas for this installation. Telefonica was currently deploying fiber optics in the Jordi Camp, Congost and Font del Radium polygons. The same operator also planned to act in the polygon of Coll de la Manya.

Taking the aforementioned points into account, this data makes Granollers one of the cities with the most broadband network, with a coverage and degree of penetration of more than 80%. It is possible thanks to the availability of 6 fiber optic networks: Vodafone (Ono); Movistar; Jazztel (Orange); Colt; municipal corporate fiber optics of the City of Granollers and the fiber optic network of the Open Network of the Generalitat of Catalonia.

We analyze broadband and HbbTV evolution (here, the case of Granollers) in this blog, in Research Group about Digital Journalism and Marketing and Broadband and in Research Group on Innovative Monetization Systems of Digital Journalism, Marketing and Tourism (SIMPED), from CECABLEEscola Universitària Mediterrani of UdGUPF and Blanquerna-URL, in Twitter (@CECABLEresearch), in the group of LinkedIn, in the page of LinkedIn, in the group of Facebook, in Instagram (CECABLE), in Pinterest and in this blog. We will go in deep in the XXV Cable and Broadband Catalonia Congress (2021, Barcelona, Blanquerna Auditorium).

76 comentarios:

  1. Una bonica anàlisi sobre realitats municipals. Us felicito per la vostra tasca, ja que sense banda ampla no som res, i en capitals de comarca i en municipis de comarca la connectivitat ens salva. Si no, pregunteu-li a la COVID-19 i a tota la gent que està fent teletreball!

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  2. La banda ampla és vital per a les comarques. Catalunya no només és Barcelona, tot i que moltes vegades ho sembli amb un centralisme aclaparador. Felicitats al blog per la vostra sensibilitat comarcal!!!

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  3. Interesante artículo. Una capacidad elevada de banda ancha es positiva y permite desarrollar más la actividad económica.

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  4. Gran labor estudiando casos locales, donde la banda ancha es esencial. ¡Felicidades!

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  5. Interesante artículo respecto a la banda ancha en una atmosfera local,

    Tal y como comentas en el artículo, la banda ancha es un tema creciente en la sociedad y más si hoy día lo utilizamos 24/7 y más respecto al tema del covid dada la curiosidad y el querer saber de la población.

    Comparto contigo que los operadores privados deberían ponerse las pilas y aprovisionar a los pueblos o pequeñas ciudades y avestecerles una conectividad de banda aceptable sino de calidad, por que hay ocasiones que llega la línea de un único operador o llega muy leve y deberían trabajar esto.

    Gracias por el artículo!!

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  6. M’ha semblat molt interessant que t’hagis focalitzat més en un municipi on la banda ampla és essencial; un tema que està en constant creixement i més ara en els temps que estem vivint del Covid. Felicitats!

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  7. Excepcional article Joan Francesc! La banda ampla és essencial en el nostre dia a dia i molt positiva. Enhorabona!

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  8. Este comentario ha sido eliminado por el autor.

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  9. Aquest tema de la banda ampla és molt interessant, ja que s'està convertint en una eina imprescindible en el nostre dia a dia. La societat, ja no només la gent jove, en fa ús d'aquest per tot. Amb la pandèmia mundial, gran part de la població ha hagut de passar al teletreball, classes i compres online, etc. Per tant, és inevitable veure que realment convé invertir en això; cal fer-ho arribar a totes les zones, no només a aquelles que són cèntriques.

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  10. Com sempre, la banda ampla sent el motor dels comerços electrònics (e-commerce). És d'aquí d'on raja la seva essencialitat, segons el meu punt de vista, tot i que també ens permet estar connectats amb tot el món sense que hi hagi aquest component econòmic o empresarial del comerç, la compra, i/o la venda. Molt important també que no caiguem en pensar que només cal un gran servei de banda ampla a grans ciutats o centres econòmics com pot ser Barcelona.

    Molt bon article JF!!

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  11. Considero que la banda ampla és fonamental per les diverses comarques. La banda ampla és importantíssima a tot arreu i en municipis de comarca és imprescindible disposar-ne. Enhorabona per l'article Joan Francesc!

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  12. Molt bon article, Joan, Avui en dia per a la nostre societat, la banda ampla es Primordial, tan a Barcelona com a qualsevol municipi de catalunya o d'Espanya.

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  13. Un article molt interessant sobre la banda ampla a l'atmosfera local, ja que, avui dia, tots necessitem la banda ampla, és essencial per nostres vides i molt mes ara amb el Covid, que tot, classes, treball, compris ... ara es fa online. Per tant, és una cosa en el que es deberia invertir més, ja que és un producte essencial. Felicitats per aquest article!!

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  14. Felicidades Joan Francesc muy buen articulo como siempre, una buena banda ancha es indispensable para cualquier comercio o empresa que quiera funcionar de una manera optima.

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  15. Great article ! it really puts into perspective how important it is to have a good internet connection nowadays, and how the government should offer the possibility of having a broadband for everybody . I think another important point in the article is the fact that broadband is something that people should be able to have everywhere not just in the main cities.

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  16. Very good article! It explains very well the important needs that are covered thanks to broadband nowadays. In the situation we are in, more than ever we have seen how thanks to technology it has been possible to continue with our lives in a normal way. This is why it's so important that everyone can have access to broadband. In addition, the government should invest much more in it in order to improve it.

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  17. Considero que es un article molt interessant, actualment crec que és de gran importancia el creixement de la banda ampla en el món del e-commerce. Es crucial que hi hagi una bona expansió i que es pugui duu a terme un bon funcionament a tot a arreu, i més en llocs on hi hagi poca cobertura i connectivitat.

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  18. Muy buen artículo sobre la banda ancha. Como podemos ver la banda ancha tiene un gran impacto en las tecnologías tanto de la información como en comunicación. Gracias a esta tecnología hoy en día nos podemos comunicar de punta a punta del planeta en cuestión de segundos, incrementar el mercado online, encontrar nuevos comerciantes y por ese motivo debemos de seguir prosperando e invirtiendo en la tecnología de la información.

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  19. Bon article, explica molt bé la necessitat de que hi hagi una bona banda ampla. Pot beneficiar molt a l'economia de la zona on es pugui trobar.

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  20. Eduardo: Such a magnificent article! It’s a fact that nowadays we are dependent on Broadband for everything in life. In the last few years we have seen how the technological era has changed in a good way. Now we are capable of communicating instead of how far the other one is. Moreover, it doesn’t matter if you don’t want to go in person to buy whatever thing you need, just with a click you will get it at home soon. Anyway, instead of the improvement in modern society there is still social inequality, therefore everyone should be able to have the same rights and all modern amenities.

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  21. Molt bon article sobre l'avanç de la banda ample, que es cada vegada mes important. El fet de cada vegada la banda ample arribi mes enfora es molt positiu pel l'e-commerce.

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  22. “En el caso de este artículo, aparecen datos de la evolución de la banda ancha, de cómo se expandió por el mundo y, posteriormente a Catalunya, para luego centrarse en el Vallès Oriental, concretamente Granollers. Destacándose como uno de los municipios con mayor cobertura y grado de penetración de red de banda ancha. La pregunta es ¿En qué puede afectar a las organizaciones si no se dispone de suficiente banda ancha? Bien, la respuesta conlleva diferentes variables como: la pérdida de información, lentitud a la hora de realizar operaciones, ya que en la actualidad la banda ancha es primordial tanto en particulares como en empresas; pérdida de tiempo productivo, entre otras posibles variables.”

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  23. “En el caso de este artículo, aparecen datos de la evolución de la banda ancha, de cómo se expandió por el mundo y, posteriormente a Catalunya, para luego centrarse en el Vallès Oriental, concretamente Granollers. Destacándose como uno de los municipios con mayor cobertura y grado de penetración de red de banda ancha. La pregunta es ¿En qué puede afectar a las organizaciones si no se dispone de suficiente banda ancha? Bien, la respuesta conlleva diferentes variables como: la pérdida de información, lentitud a la hora de realizar operaciones, ya que en la actualidad la banda ancha es primordial tanto en particulares como en empresas; pérdida de tiempo productivo, entre otras posibles variables.”

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  24. A very good article, broadband has a great impact on information and communication technologies, and that is why it is becoming more and more important. In addition to benefiting the economy, it makes us discover many things of interest.
    Thanks for all this information!

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  25. Un article molt interessant. Casos com el de Granollers, la capital i la ciutat més poblada del Vallés Oriental, ens fan reflexionar sobre la necessitat i la dependència que tenim avui dia amb la banda ampla, perquè sense una gran cobertura les tasques que fem quotidianament com les classes online o el teletreball se'ns farien molt més pesades del que són, per no parlar de com afectaria a grans empreses. Esperem que la banda ampla sigui avançant i suposi més millores per a tots.

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  26. Molt bon article sobre la banda ampla! També podem afegir que a causa de la crisi biològica que estem vivint, el sector laboral i l'educatiu, han hagut de reposicionar-se en el treball utilitzant eines digitals. La banda ampla ens ha facilitat aquest reposicionament tecnològic, i ha fet més agradable l'adaptació a les mesures de sanitat.

    Xavier Garcia

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  27. Artículo muy interesante, sin duda la banda ancha es algo muy importante e imprescindible ha día de hoy, por lo que cualquier mejora será beneficiosa para todos.

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  28. Un petit comentari respecte a aquest article, trob que és molt important tenir en conta la importància de la banda ampla, i encar més en l'actualitat, ja que a causa de la COVID ens hem vist obligats a canviar la manera en què treballam i convivim a casa. Així que aquest problema que ja fa bastant estona que el tenim a Espanya, s'àuria de solucionar el més ràpid possible, ja que molts de municipis estan tenint dificultats per seguir el ritme.
    Molt bon article,
    Paula Palou

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  29. Este comentario ha sido eliminado por el autor.

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  30. M'ha sorprès molt que Granollers fos una de les ciutats amb més banda ampla, m'esperava el contrari. Si és cert que va haver-hi uns anys on tothom instal·lava la fibra òptica i recordo que la velocitat a internet va millorar bastant. Bona feina en la investigació, un article molt interessant.

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  31. Gret article! I think it’s really important to study cases in different countries and different cities but it's really nice sometimes to focus on a more local atmosphere. Broadband is really useful nowadays, and we’ve recently discovered more of it’s great uses due to the pandemic where we were forced to do everything online, online shopping, online learning, online meetings, online working… So now more than ever Broadband it’s vital. We need more agreements with different companies such as the agreement between the City Council and Jazztel. This way we’ll be able to connect the world. Big companies sometimes neglect small villages but these are the ones that need to be more connected.

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  32. un articulo muy interesante y bueno. Hoy en día tener una banda ancha es fundamental para las empresas y así poder crecer.

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  33. Articulo muy interesante acerca de la banda ancha, tema que se hace aun más interesante dada la situación sanitaria actual, la qual ha provocado un uso mucho mayor de internet. Me ha gustado especialmente saber cómo apareció y se expandió por el mundo, y posteriormente a Catalunya la banda ancha, y me ha sorprendido mucho el nivel de banda ancha que hay en Granollers.

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  34. Es un article molt interesant i important sobretot en aquests moments en que tenir una banda ampla et pot facilitar molt les coses ja sigui per treballar desde casa, fer clases online, demandar la compra a domicili, etc. Es necessari invertir en aquest aspecte i fer arribar la banda ampla a totes les zones de Catalunya i no nomes a les grans ciutats o a les poblacions mes grans.

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  35. Molt interessant que hagis centrat l'article en un municipi on la banda ampla és molt important, ja que està en constant creixement. Felicitats!

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  36. Un article molt interesant! Es pot veure clarament la importancia de la banda ample i el gran impacte que ha fet a la tecnologia i en la manera que ens comuniqurm avui en dia.

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  37. Buen articulo, bastante interesante, especialmente en el marco social y económico que nos encontramos hoy en día, donde una gran parte de la actividad personal y empresarial depende mucho de la conexión a una red que sea rápida, segura y que funcione de manera continua, sin caídas del servicio. Para una organización la banda ancha es vital, especialmente en estos tiempos en que se manejan utilizando las ventajas de las nuevas tecnologías. Se maneja información compartida por diversos departamentos y distintas localizaciones, en tiempo real, se mantiene comunicación con clientes y se toman decisiones en base esta información. Si no contase con la suficiente banda ancha, no podría organizarse y tomar decisiones de manera conjunta sobre operaciones administrativas y llegar a acuerdos de manera rápida y efectiva. Es decir, el tiempo de hacer estas gestiones les seria mas lento y complicado al no poder compartir información en tiempo real.

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  39. Me ha parecido interesanta la focalizacion en un municipio, donde la banda ancha es sustancial. Muy buen artículo Joan!!!

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