EU support launch of OPERA® Phase II to boost adoption of low cost Broadband over Powerline applications

The OPERA specification is the global solution for Access BPL

21 Feb 2007

Madrid, 21, February, 2007 - OPERA, the Open PLC European Research Alliance for a new generation of Powerline Communications integrated network technology today announced that the European Commission has approved financing of Euro 9.06 million to support extended field deployments based on an open specification for access Broadband over Powerline (BPL) applications.

The specification adopted in OPERA Phase 1 is publicly available on the project web site (www.ist-opera.org).

Over the next two years (2007 - 2008), the objective of OPERA Phase II will be to catalyze  the deployment of low cost Broadband access applications over electricity networks for a wide range of applications and use cases that include:

• Broadband Internet Access
• E-learning
• Telephony (VoIP and TDMoPLC)
• Smart Home
• New intelligent grid services (EMS, AMM, etc…)
• Video over IP (IPTVoPLC)
• Video on demand
• Security
• E-Health

The OPERA specification for BPL access applications adopted in 2006, is based on DS2's 200 Mbps technology and was developed by a consortium of 37 companies that included silicon vendors, equipment vendors, electric utilities, telecom operators and universities from 10 countries. This specification, the only open, global specification for access BPL, generated valuable contributions that have been submitted to the powerline standardisation work underway in both the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). The OPERA specification has also been endorsed by the Universal Powerline Association (UPA), the leading Powerline Communications industry body driving the acceptance of open standards for access BPL and home networking applications over Powerline.

OPERA Phase II will contribute field research to both IEEE and ETSI confirming the importance of the work undertaken in developing and validating the specification for the deployment of access BPL.

The Consortium supporting OPERA Phase II is made up of 26 partners (including 8 universities and research centers) from 11 different countries. The consortium is led by the Spanish utility Iberdrola.

Filed: Feb 2007, BPL, Press, Co: OPERA, Tech: OPERA 200 Mbps