FONS Joins FTTH Council EuropeFONS Joins FTTH Council Europe

MARLBOROUGH, Mass. -- Fiber Optic Network Solutions (FONS) Corporation, a leading manufacturer of passive connectivity solutions for the fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) market, announced that it has been voted onto the Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) Council Europe and has become a founding member of the FTTH Council Asia-Pacific through its joint venture corporation, FONS-Nitta Asia Pacific based in Tokyo, Japan. As sister organizations to the N.A. FTTH Council, an organization that FONS has been affiliated with and been a member of for several years, both the European and Asia-Pacific councils have a mission to educate, promote and accelerate FTTH market development and the resulting economic and “quality-of-life” enhancements gained from FTTH deployments. FONS joins an elite list of almost fifty global broadband industry leaders as members of the FTTH Council in Europe and twenty five in Asia-Pacific, and holds the prestigious position of Membership Committee Chairman for the FTTH Council in Asia Pacific through FONS-Nitta Corporation.

Surveys of FTTH activity around the world show that today there are well over a million subscribers with fiber access connection, with the Asia-Pacific region growing the fastest and having the most number of subscribers. According to Dittberner Associates, Inc., a Maryland based industry consulting and research firm, the worldwide capital expenditures related to FTTH access technology will reach $22.8 billion in 2013, from an estimated $3.7 billion in 2004, with predictions that the Asia Pacific region will be the largest market for FTTH access technology with 52.8% of the total, or 12 billion dollars. China alone is predicted to represent one-third of the region with nearly 24% of the total market. According to Taku Banno, Membership Committee Chairman and General Manager of FONS-Nitta Corporation, “As the worldwide leader and fastest growing market for FTTH access technology, the FTTH council Asia-Pacific recognizes the importance of its role to promote the extension of fiber access across the Asia Pacific region and to provide education on the enormous capacity and rich services that are only possible on optical fiber-to-the-home networks”. Mr. Banno continues, “The FTTH council Asia-Pacific will work closely with the existing FTTH council organizations in North America and Europe as advocates for global FTTH initiatives.”

The FTTH council Europe, formulated in 2004 as a resource in response to the developing needs and demands for broadband in Europe, held its second annual FTTH Conference in Amsterdam in early February which was well received with over 500 in attendance. FONS-Europe, an exhibitor at the Conference, showcased FONS’ Pathways™ FTTP passive connectivity solution, featuring its best-in-class and widely deployed Fiber Distribution Hub product offering. John Killeen, General Manager of FONS-Europe states, “There exists enormous opportunities for growth of FTTH access technology in Europe, with current activity mainly concentrated in the Nordic countries and localized projects throughout the remaining European countries. The time is optimal to elevate the awareness of broadband technology in Europe in response to increasing demand for service providers to offer advanced trip play services.”

Fiber Optic Network Solutions Corp. (FONS)