Why is fibre optic expansion so important?

In recent years, data consumption has steadily increased.

Among the main drivers of this development, which is the result of the ongoing digitisation of society, are the following aspects as well as the fact that the need for higher upload speeds is increasing rapidly:

• IP TV
• video on demand
• online gaming
• cloud computing
• smartphones/tablets
• Virtual Reality

Nearly every aspect of private, public and professional live is affected by this rapid development. It manifests itself, among other things, in the increasing connectivity of objects, devices, households, buildings and public infrastructures that are centrally controlled in a communication network, obtain or deliver data and applications/software/apps via a network ("cloud") . In this context, new terms have emerged such as "Internet of Things", "smart home", "smart building", "smart city" and "smart grid".

Only a high-performance fibre optic network can ensure further steps towards a "gigabit society" with ultra-fast internet and will thus contribute greatly to increasing digitalisation and the attractiveness of Liechtenstein as a business location, which will help to maintain the competitiveness of the country.

High-definition television / IP TV

In the TV sector, high definition can be described as the new SD (standard definition). The bandwidth demand for HD TV (IP TV) is around 7 Mbit/s (Full HD, 1980 x 1080 pixels).

The Ultra-HD 4K (3840 x 2160 pixels) TV generation has a bandwidth demand of around 20 Mbit/s, and there are already some streaming providers who offer corresponding programmes.

The next TV generation Ultra-HD 8K (7680 x 7320 pixels) will require around 100 Mbit/s of bandwidth.

5G

Three fourth-generation 4G (LTE) mobile networks are currently in operation in Liechtenstein. The next generation of mobile communications, called 5G, is currently being established. It will not only be much faster than 4G (download speeds of up to 10 Gbit/s), but will also be able to respond in near real-time, enabling completely new applications.

In addition, 5G will be able to serve significantly more devices per radio cell simultaneously, which will be particularly important for the Internet of Things (IoT).

The basis for connecting all necessary 5G radio cells is already in place throughout the country with the completion of the nationwide FTTB access network.

Last amended: December 2023