Portugal Telecom SGPS, S.A. and Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (SingTel) have signed a collaboration agreement to share operational and commercial best practices in fiber-optic and IPTV based pay TV services and to develop applications for ultra high-speed fixed and wireless networks.
As part of this agreement, both companies will tap into each other’s expertise and partnership deals in areas such as IPTV and FTTH, as well as the mobile and business markets.
The agreement includes:
- Sharing benchmarks and best practices particularly in operating efficient and effective fiber-based fixed line networks
- Collaboration on research and development including joint creation of cross-platform applications and solutions
- Leveraging joint scale and assets in wholesale procurement leading to potential cost savings
- Fostering talent pools across the companies including employee secondment programs
Working teams will identify collaboration opportunities in the areas identified in the agreement.
Portugal Telecom’s FTTH network currently passes 1 million homes, with an additional 600,000 FTTH homes passed an announced goal for 2011. The national carrier also has test 10G GPON technology (see “Portugal Telecom, Alcatel-Lucent to trial symmetrical 10G GPON”).
This year in Singapore, SingTel launched 100-Mbps FTTH services to residential customers.