Launch of local information sessions 

Proximus's optical fiber can be found on practically all large industrial parks. Several hundred companies are already directly connected to this digital highway.

"Optical fiber is like a highway, but without the inconvenience of traffic jams. Companies that are connected to optical fiber see their productivity rise thanks to the application possibilities of ultra-fast connections: business-critical applications, homeworking, "cloud" applications, etc.", says Bart Van Den Meersche, Chief Enterprise Market Officer of Proximus.

Yet not enough companies are aware of the possibilities of optical fiber, or they have a distorted image of the price. That is why Proximus is starting an information campaign in West Flanders. This campaign is already underway in the provinces of Limburg and Namur as well.

This afternoon, under the chairmanship of deputy Jean de Bethune, a round-table discussion was held in Bruges with Proximus, the West Flanders Provincial Development Company (POM), representatives of the West Flemish employer organizations (Voka and UNIZO) and the intermunicipal associations Leiedal and WVi.

Representative Jean de Bethune said: "It's essential that business parks are made accessible not only by road, but also digitally. Here, optical fiber undeniably plays an important role to take on the increasing digitization of information flows. Being connected to fiber increases the competitiveness of both the business parks and the companies that are established there. The opening up of digital forms part of the concept of the Business Park of the Future, one of the priority action points in West Deal, the strategic economic policy plan of the province. A good digital network is essential for the growth of our SMEs." 

Fast broadband Internet

Without question, fast broadband Internet is the future. Data traffic is increasing year after year. More and more devices are connected to the Internet, and the Net is increasingly used to exchange masses of data. Optical fiber offers the ultimate broadband experience with ultra-fast download and upload speeds and unrivalled responsiveness for data exchanges. It is therefore the ideal basis for being able to work optimally with the latest applications, e.g. in the cloud. Over the past 10 years, Proximus has invested more than 7 billion euro in its high-performance fixed and mobile network and in the coming years Proximus will continue to invest 900 million euro annually. Proximus already brought optical fiber to the street with its VDSL2 technology, which is available to 90% of the population. This places the company in the European top three, after Switzerland and Luxembourg. Thanks to the vectoring technology, customers who are connected to the VDSL network are able to obtain an Internet speed of up to 70 Mbps.  In addition, Proximus is stepping up work to connect companies directly to optical fiber in business parks. In parallel, for the mobile part, Proximus aims to provide all business parks in West Flanders with 4G coverage by the end of 2015.  

Fiber in business parks

Optical fiber for companies allows guaranteed download and upload speeds of 1 Gbps and over. The technology offers huge upgrade possibilities in terms of speed and capacity. Moreover, it can be efficiently enhanced with optional services such as guaranteed end-to-end availability of the network connection, back-up via the mobile network and security options, cybersecurity.

Optical fiber, a must for economic development

The opening up of digital is of paramount importance for West Flemish companies.

"At present, there are already 98 business parks with optical fiber," says Bart Van Den Meersche, Chief Enterprise Market Officer of Proximus, "and we're glad that the West Flanders Provincial Development Company (POM) and the employer organizations are focusing on the importance of high-performance data networks. Together with them, Proximus will inform companies in West Flanders about the presence and advantages of the optical fiber network."

Deputy Jean de Bethune: "Indeed, the importance of the opening up of broadband should not be underestimated in our multimedia society and globalized economy. It is an extra trump card for stimulating innovative and international entrepreneurship in our region."

Lecot-Raedschelders from Heule-Kortrijk

The firm Lecot-Raedschelders is one of the 500 West Flemish companies that have made the switch to optical fiber. In fact, it opted for a fiber connection already in 2010. According to system administrator Johan Vanmarcke, that switch was necessary because of the firm's constant growth: 

"The advantage of optical fiber was above all the increased and guaranteed speed and the stability of the connection to our 40 shops". 

Low connection costs

To make optical fiber accessible to companies in West Flanders, Proximus created zones in which companies can hook up to the optical fiber network for a flat-rate price. The telecom operator bears part of the connection costs itself. 

Bart Van den Meersche: "On 112 of the 125 (or 89%) regional business parks in West Flanders, companies can switch to fiber for a fixed entry fee: a company can get connected to optical fiber for 1000 euro with a five-year contract (2000 euro for a three-year contract). That amount is considerably lower than the actual connection costs. In this way we want to make optical fiber accessible to all companies."

On top of the connection cost of 1000 (or 2000) euro, there is of course also a monthly subscription fee.

Together with the employer organizations and the POM, Proximus will be holding information sessions in the business parks of the province to raise awareness among entrepreneurs of the advantages of fiber.  

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