New Operator Introducing SDSL in Sweden

Point to Point Communication (P2P),
operating as an ISP since 1999 with 150 customers in Stockholm
city, is launching SDSL technology for broadband in ten Swedish cities.
The service starts in Stockholm, Linkoping, Gothenburg and Malmoe. Later
this year P2P will add seven more cities to the list.

P2P, was bought by the Internet company Arete in December 1999. The new ownership is
the reason to a more expansive approach.

The price range is from SEK1,900 (US$220) per month for 128 Kbit/s to SEK14,500
(US$1690) for 2.3 Mbit/s. This level is not the best but still at the low end.

“The need for flat rate is increasing on the Internet with a capacity over
the ISDN-level. The timing is right for an expansion outside Stockholm. With
our concept we can offer smaller and medium sized companies this service at
competitive price levels,” says Fredrik Thelander, chief executive officer
at P2P Communications.

The background is that the monopoly regarding the phone lines controlled by
state owned telco and ISP Telia is changing. But P2P is
installing its own equipment for making SDSL possible and is cooperating
with Banverket, the state owned
operator of the railroads.

Banverket can offer 13,000 km of optical cable with 800 connection points in
Sweden. This makes them to one of the bigger players on the broadband
backbone business. Customers are different operators, big companies and
ISPs.

This launch of SDSL connections is the first in Sweden. Telia has recently introduced ADSL connections.