SBC Communications announced plans to invest $800 million in video and high-speed Internet access technology in Texas. The move follows the passage of a bill that streamlines the process of getting cable franchises for telecommunications carriers.
SBC company officials were joined by Texas Gov. Rick Perry, numerous state and local officials, and executives from Alcatel at their Plano, Texas, IPTV Demonstration Center, in announcing one of the largest single private-sector technology deployments in the state's history.
Texas Gov. Perry took part in a tour of Project Lightspeed technology at the Alcatel facility. SBC has a five-year agreement with Alcatel to provide equipment and video system integration services for Project Lightspeed.
In addition to the investment for ongoing deployment of Project Lightspeed in Texas, SBC unveiled an extensive broadband expansion effort:
- DSL broadband service will be added to the remaining 72 suburban and rural SBC Texas central offices that do not have the capability today, meaning that all of the company's 535 central offices in Texas will be wired to provide the service to eligible customers.
- In addition, through the installation of fiber-equipped neighborhood DSL gateways, SBC Texas is bringing DSL service to another 228 neighborhoods in dozens of communities throughout the state by the end of the year. SBC said these moves will put advanced broadband service within reach of the vast majority of cities and towns served by SBC Texas.
