MINISTER FOR Communications Eamon Ryan yesterday unveiled a €5 million investment in internet technology developed in Ireland that will bring 140 new high-end research jobs in the next year.
In a world’s first, the technology uses tuneable lasers instead of silicon chips to deliver data and will enable high-definition streaming of sports and movies to home computers and mobile phones.
It is the second phase of Government investment in the Exemplar programme, which solves the problem giants like ATT have been addressing for the last 10 years – congestion on the internet .
Developed by two UCD graduates at Intune Networks, it has the potential to carry the equivalent of London’s entire telephone network from just one small computer room in Dublin.
“This is a breakthrough moment for Ireland,” said Mr Ryan. “The future of the internet is here and it’s being developed in Ireland.”
He hopes it will act as a magnet for investment. More than 30 telecoms companies have already signed up to test the technology, including BT, Imagine and IBM.
One of the first companies planning to pilot the system for the public is Smock Alley Theatre, a 17th-century theatre in Temple Bar which will open again in March next year with international stars including Liam Neeson and Robert de Niro to perform.
Such is the incredible speed with which data can be transferred that that one of the creators of the technology, Tom Dunne, believes consumers will in future be able to run their own TV channels.
“Take social networking. People will be able to broadcast their own events to their friends and family,” he said.
It also unleashes the prospect of pay-as-you-go broadband rates and high-quality streaming of sports and movies onto phones.
“The opportunities are endless. we can see uses for teachers, social workers, businesses and the great thing is you will be able to decide exactly what quality broadband you want and for how long for and pay for just that. No more flat rates,” said Mr Dunne.
Exemplar works by solving the problem of costly bottlenecks caused by congestion at switches in the telephone network. The average internet connection involves 20 switches from home computer to host computer.
The first live network was switched on by Mr Ryan yesterday at Parkwest Business Centre in west Dublin and a full-scale ring around Dublin will be built for further testing in 2011 with a view to rolling out a national test bed in 2012.
The technology, which is locked down with 16 patents, is being made available to any company worldwide for trial purposes. Normally companies developing technology do it in private and use it to leverage competitive advantage.
