A digital highway - without the traffic jams Belgacom's optical fiber can be found in practically every large industrial park, and several hundred companies are already directly connected to this digital highway.
"Optical fiber is like a highway, but without the traffic jams. Companies that switch to optical fiber see their productivity rise, thanks to the application possibilities of ultra-fast connections", says Geert Standaert, Executive Vice President of Belgacom.
Yet not enough companies are aware of the possibilities of optical fiber, and many have a distorted image of the price. For this reason, Belgacom is launching an information campaign for companies, starting in Limburg. The campaign will be launched in all the other provinces later on. This morning, a round-table discussion, chaired by Deputy for Economic Affairs Marc Vandeput, was held in Hasselt with all the partners involved in the SALK plan, following the closure of Ford Genk. This plan brings together all the employment projects and focuses on topics such as the importance of high-performance data networks for opening up the Limburg economy.
Deputy Marc Vandeput: "Limburg still has a large reserve of well-equipped industrial parks. With the Limburg agreement, we have already started to improve the infrastructural and multimodal access of these areas. Through SALK, these efforts will be continued and even strengthened, thanks to the access via high-performance data networks. The optical fiber connection of the industrial parks in Limburg already creates a stronger economic investment environment."

Without question, fast broadband Internet is the future. Every year, the amount of data sent increases exponentially. This is partly because more devices are linked to the Internet, but also because people are putting more data on the Internet. Optical fiber offers the ultimate broadband experience with ultra-fast download and upload speeds and unrivalled responsiveness for data exchanges.
This is increasingly demanded by the latest applications, such as those in the cloud. Over the past 10 years, Belgacom has invested more than 7 billion euro in its high-performance fixed and mobile networks, and will invest 900 million annually in the years to come.
Belgacom already brought optical fiber to the street with its VDSL2 technology, which covers 89% of the population, thereby earning a place among the European top three, after Switzerland and Luxembourg. Thanks to vectoring technology, customers can enjoy Internet speeds of up to 70 Mbps on the VDSL network. Moreover, Belgacom is now also stepping up the direct connection of companies to optical fiber in industrial parks.

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Optical fiber in industrial areas

Optical fiber offers companies guaranteed download and upload speeds upwards of 1 Gbps and huge possibilities for upgrades in terms of speed and capacity. Companies can also opt for guarantees on end-to-end network availability, back-up solutions via the mobile network, and security possibilities (cyber security).

Optical fiber: just as important as the North-South rail link
According to Geert Standaert, "For companies in Limburg, the digital era is just as important as the North-South link for putting the crisis after the Ford closure behind them. We are therefore pleased that, in the context of the SALK plan, the province of Limburg and the employers' organizations are focusing on the importance of high-performance data networks. Together with them, Belgacom will inform companies in Limburg about the presence and advantages of the optical fiber network."

Deputy for Economic Affairs Marc Vandeput: "The importance of the broadband connection should not be underestimated in our multimedia society and globalized economy. It is an extra trump card for stimulating innovative, international entrepreneurship and for the Limburg acquisition strategy."
Facil Corporate in Genk

Someone who has already opted for optical fiber is Danny Steukers, Vice President of the full service provider Facil Corporate in Genk. His company is among the 115 Limburg companies that have made the switch.

"The advantage of optical fiber is that you not only can download faster, but also upload faster. We run many applications that require this, such as video-conferencing and the interaction with our applications in the data center." "Danny Steukers
Low connection cost

To make optical fiber accessible to companies in Limburg, Belgacom created zones in which companies can hook up to the optical fiber network for a lump-sum connection charge. The telecom operator bears part of the connection costs itself.

Geert Standaert:"Limburg already has about 52 zones with such an upfront lump-sum charge, including all the major industrial parks. A company that switches over to optical fiber can connect for 1,000 euro (for a five-year contract; 2,000 euro for a three-year contract). This amount is far lower than the actual connection cost. This way, we want to make optical fiber accessible to all companies."

In addition, the customer also pays a monthly subscription fee of course.

Belgacom, together with the employers' organizations and the province of Limburg, will hold information sessions in Limburg's industrial parks. They will present the advantages of switching to optical fiber to entrepreneurs, and Limburg companies will receive an information package from the province and the employers' organizations. The information campaign will be rolled out in other provinces in the autumn.

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