Bredbandsbolaget (B2) - the future of broadband
Peter Ekelund, CEO of Swedish broadband network provider Bredbandsbolaget (B2), outlines his vision of the future of broadband at the conference TV meets the Web in Amsterdam.
His central message was that if left to the phone and cable companies, broadband could remain a pipe dream. This is why B2 has built its own network.
He demonstrated the company's vision of a broadband portal, a content management solution called Brixo. It allows user to easily customize channels.
B2 defines broadband as at least 10Mbps both ways, which it can guarantee over its own networks. Mr. Ekelund said that this is the only bandwidth large enough to deliver the kinds of services made possible by the company. It will offer this connection for a flat rate of 25 EURO per month, much cheaper than cable and ADSL provided by Telia, its Swedish rival.
For the moment, B2 is concentrating its efforts on the Swedish market. However, it does plan to expand in Europe and overseas and has already secured network capacity in Norway.
One of Mr. Ekelund's main points was that the public Internet was not capable of supporting the kind of broadband people want. It was not designed for such a purpose and future demand will force it to crash.
He believes that future demand will be extensive. In Sweden, for example, it is predicted that 80 percent of the population will have access to broadband Internet within three years.
The company's business model thus rests on persuading users to abandon their existing telephone or cable connection and have the B2 solution installed. Such persuasion could, as Mr. Ekelund admitted in an answer to a later question, represent a significant marketing challenge.
The company has developed its own set-top box, which will be available for sale during the first quarter of 2001 when it will begin to offer interactive television services such as video-on-demand and broadband Internet access.
Mr. Ekelund admitted that B2's plans were expensive but claimed that it would generate its profit returns in about two year's time. He anticipates that B2's market share will not come from existing television broadcasters but from cable operators and telecom companies.