ITGumbo: spicing IT up

Power lines reach most homes around the globe as compared to cable wires, telephone lines or satellite signals. While web clean-up is in progress with new hardware and software architecture design, the World Wide Web has not yet reached every home. Fiber optic cables and optical switches are to build a strong backbone and carry signals to longer distance on fiber. But the cost of laying down fiber cables or installing satellite towers is not negligible even for the developed countries. E-governance and e-commerce cannot be practiced successfully until every citizen has access to WWW. The net of telephone wires, cable wires and power lines either underground or in air has associated maintenance cost. Subscriber receives different bills for every service. In the converged services era where voice, data and video have been converged on cable or satellite an isolated power service brings a separate utility bill to be fulfilled. When moving into a new house one has to ensure subscription to converged service or remain disconnected with the external world until the service provider activates the account. One can connect via 3G/4G mobile phone or WLAN connected laptop, but not at all places.

What an amazing thing it will be if at all places where a power point can be found a phone or a computer or a cable box can be plugged in. There are many advantages of Broadband over Power Line:

• Converged Services: voice, data, TV, power; single utility bill for the consumer. Service provider may provide always-on basic package that can be upgraded later.
• Service provider may provide one/separate access account for all voice/data/video services. Consumer may be able to access any service with his/her user name from any power point.
• Reduced maintenance cost for service providers with no cables or satellite towers for extending service to new areas.
• Increased reachability for WWW will make e-governance and e-commerce popular.
• Rise in revenue with increased customer base for all service providers.
• Higher literacy rate.

The quadruple-play (q4) converged services <voice, data, video, mobile> will have another definition <voice, data, video, power>. An article on Broadband over Power Line. With upto 200Mbps data speed, BPL can be a competition to cable internet or DSL broadband internet. Popular service providers like DirecTV Group are planning to test BPL services. WLAN access points may be installed on electric poles.