WORLDWIDE MARKET RESEARCH REPORT - CISE

EC/IST FP6 Project No 026920
Work Package: 6
Type of document: Report
Date: 20.12.2007
File name: OP_WP6_D37_V1.0.doc Version: 1.0
Title: Worldwide Market Research Report 30 / 356
PLC were very favorable; a 50% Internet user community (of which 60% was on dial-up),
poor DSL coverage, low affordability rating and monopoly-based prices for access. Aurora
Energy is therefore pursuing PLC for the provision of telecommunication services, as well as
for the subsequent use in smart grid applications.
On the Australian continent, a company called Silk (formed from the South Australian Utility
ESTA and Powercor) was created in 2006, which owns the fiber resources of the above
utility companies. Based on the successful model of Aurora, and its mother company
experience (Cheung Kong, Hong Kon) Silk announced in March that it would undertake
several PLC pilot projects in Melbourne and Victoria.
Despite the fact that the ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority) has
created an environment for PLC pilot projects, full commercial introduction is still dependent
on the availability of radio emission guidelines and equipment standards. Through their
ownership of fiber networks, and concrete entry into the telecommunications market, it is
expected that electric utilities will expand their PLC applications portfolios significantly once
the above are resolved.
4 SERVICES PENETRATION – Western Europe
4.1 Background
During the Phase I of the OPERA project, which was carried out over the 2 year period
2004-2005, WP4 (Services) identified a number of services the delivery or transport of which
would be suitable over PLC access networks.
As a follow-up to OPERA I, WP6 was asked to provide an overview of the penetration of the
latter PLC-based services in Europe.