Ikanos Communications, Inc., a leading developer and provider of Fiber Fast broadband solutions, announced that Belgacom, one of the largest telecommunications providers in Europe, has begun deploying Ikanos-based equipment in order to offer interactive broadband services over VDSL. Utilizing equipment powered by Ikanos' CleverConnect 600 and SmartLeap 8100 products, Belgacom is offering new, high-bandwidth interactive TV services including on-demand TV programs and digital video recording.

"Belgacom has been among the first and most innovative carriers in Europe when it comes to offering our subscribers the most advanced telecommunications services," said a spokesperson from Belgacom. "The Ikanos-based VDSL technology allows us to expand our current interactive services offering by enabling multi-stream television concurrent with high-speed broadband Internet access, which is an important customer requirement."

Interactive TV services are achieving rapid customer acceptance, and provide carriers with the opportunity to increase service revenues. According to In-Stat, revenues from direct-to-home pay TV services will rise from $46 billion in 2005 to $80 billion in 2009, and the number of worldwide subscribers will reach 100 million by 2008.

"We are pleased that Belgacom has selected Ikanos-based equipment to power their advanced interactive services," said Dean Grumlose, vice president of marketing at Ikanos Communications. "We believe carriers worldwide will continue responding to rising consumer demand for triple play services, and select VDSL as the fastest and most cost-effective way to deliver compelling broadband applications."

The Ikanos CleverConnect 600 chipset is a single-port solution configurable for VDSL2 and VDSL customer premises applications, while the SmartLeap 8100 chipset is an eight-port solution configurable for VDSL2 and VDSL DSLAM applications. The chipsets are designed to offer up to 30 Mbps symmetrical bandwidth, or up to 60 Mbps downstream and 30 Mbps upstream, enabling delivery of a wide range of new carrier service offerings.