Copper Switch off is the New Norm

In short, the decision to invest in fibre optics - optical communications technology - and to stop investing in copper-based communications systems is to shut down copper. Copper shutdowns are the new norm, but how and why have telecoms companies decided against investing in fibre?

This article analyzes the history of communications and telecommunications and examines the historical aspects of the shift to optical technologies. In the last 30 years, undercurrents and developments have developed in the world of communication. These changes have begun to affect our daily lives, as can be seen from improved communication devices that reduce earthly distances. Today, the impact of these changes on our daily lives and on the future of telecommunications in general is real.

One can say that this is the revolution in communication that Homo sapiens has ever gone through. This revolution was triggered by the development of thin strands of glass fibers known as optical fibers. The development and use of fibre optic cables enabled the creation of the world's first high-speed wireless network.

Obviously, the use of light for communication is nothing new for Homo sapiens, it has been used in communication since the earliest recorded history. Communication with light used to be slow, climatic conditions limited communication, and the techniques used were not mature.

The ancient Greeks, Phoenicians, Chinese and Indians reflected the light from mirrors and luminous objects to send specific signals that they could decipher. Artificial light replaced sunlight, switches were introduced over a period of time, but the overall concept remained the same.

Military ships used variants of the old technique for low-speed communication, and Alexander Graham Bell developed the photophone, which sent voice signals through a beam of light. In a photophone, sunlight reflected a mirror that oscillated with sound waves. A photocell, that was the receiver, was set up and connected to an electric circuit, which connected the loudspeaker to a loudspeaker.

The idea was a good one, but the technology was not put into practice, and it was only with the invention of the radio in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that we were able to send a signal, according to the National Archives.

The invention of the laser was a turning point in the history of communication and advanced the research of light communication through the air. Fog and rain limited the lasers' practical light communication because they needed a clear line of sight, but the lasers delivered a much clearer and more accurate signal than the radio, according to the National Archives.

Somehow, scientists recognized the need for a low-loss key medium, and the scientific community continued its efforts to develop light-guided fiber optics. In the 1970s, the first low-loss glass fibers were developed and the first fiber optic cables were produced in the mid-1970s. The Corning factory conducted the world's first commercial production of fiber optic cables in the United States in 1974.

Many companies began to refine fiber-optic technology, which eventually led to the development of the world's first high-speed fiber network. Many telecommunications companies have started to use fiber for short-distance communications.

In the 1980s, Bell announced it was laying its Northeast Corridor, and in Canada, Saskatchewan's telephones were laid out. First, fiber optic cables were used to transmit television signals during the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics. Then there is the fiber optic industry, which looks back on the development of the first high-speed fiber network in the United States.

Since the 1980s, fiber has gained popularity in the telecommunications world and has now acquired the status of a generally accepted and proven technology. The new standard is a high-speed fiber optic cable with a maximum bandwidth of 1,000 megabits per second.