Pesco Telecom SAL has commissioned Siemens Networks with the delivery and turnkey installation of cutting-edge broadband technology based on IP (Internet Protocoll) and ADSL2+ (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line). ADSL2+ will offer the Lebanese carrier's customers speeds of up to 25 Mbit/s. Lebanon's first DSL-based broadband service is scheduled to go live at the beginning of 2007.

As the sole supplier, Siemens Networks will provide the data service provider Pesco Telecom with ADSL2+ technology and integrate it into the Lebanese carrier's network. As part of the deal, Siemens will supply Surpass hiX 5630 IP-DSLAMs (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexers). This technology will give Pesco great flexibility in terms of delivering the services its customers need and builts the necessary infrastructure for consumer services like fast internet access, Voice over IP or IPTV. Furthermore the Siemens technology allows Pesco Telecom to optimize its infrastructure costs. The contract also covers network components like the first mile Ethernet switch Surpass hiD 6615, which aggregates the expected data traffic, and E-series Broadband Services Routers from Juniper Networks to ensure reliable service delivery, as well as the necessary training courses for Pesco Telecom engineers.

This makes Pesco Telecom the first provider to launch a DSL-based broadband network on the Lebanese extremely competitive and demanding market. It is one of the four data service providers in Lebanon to have been granted a license as wholesale traders authorizing them to supply Internet Service Providers (ISP) with broadband services.

Overview of the Lebanese data and Internet market

Lebanon is a peculiar market in that the telecom sector is still a state monopoly but the government has over the past few years issued special licenses for Internet Service Providers (ISP) and data service providers (DSP), to allow the private sector meet the rising demands of the business and residential communities for both data networking and Internet services.

ADSL2+

ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) is a form of DSL (Digital Subscriber Line). ADSL2+ is a further development of the ADSL standard (G.992.1/G.992.2) designed above all to improve the data transfer rate and range of ADSL connections. ADSL2+ extends the bandwidth of the ADSL signal to 2.2 MHz, thus increasing the maximum data transfer rate in the receive direction to 25 Mbit/s.

Pesco Telecom

Pesco Telecom is an established telecom operator in Lebanon since 1993 with a proven track record of innovative and challenging technical achievements. It started as Lebanon’s first and only satellite earth stations contractor and built most of the satellite stations for the Lebanese Ministry of Telecom and the country's private TV stations.

In 1997, it obtained a wireless data transmission license from the government (Decree 9860) and launched a dedicated network for financial transactions, growing it over the years into a wireless, nationwide, multi-protocol, network servicing the business and internet community. Its offerings include Clear Channel and Frame Relay connections to the large corporate customers as well as the more affordable IP-based services for the smaller businesses. Its latest offering is a broadband portable internet access which is the first of its kind in the Middle East. This product, designed for the SOHO users, was launched in 2004. It proved to be an instant success, attracting thousands of users and confirming the undisputed leadership of Pesco Telecom in the Lebanese data service sector.