It’s taken more than two years, but the Office of the Telecommunications Authority has finally announced the request for tender for the subsidy scheme for rolling out optical fibre networks in remote areas in Hong Kong. The Chief Executive announced in the 2017 Policy Address that the Government would take the lead to provide operators with financial incentives in the form of subsidies to encourage the extension of optical fibre networks to villages in remote areas.
The subsidy scheme covers 235 villages across nine districts in the New Territories and outlying islands (namely North, Sai Kung, Tai Po, Sha Tin, Yuen Long, Tuen Mun, Tsuen Wan, Kwai Tsing and Islands). These 235 villages are grouped under six projects. In June 2019, OFCA issued tender documents to invite eligible fixed network operators (FNOs) to participate in the subsidy scheme.
The subsidy scheme will subsidise the selected FNOs to roll out lead-in connections to the vicinity of the entrances of the villages concerned. The subsidy scheme will also subsidise the roll-out of three submarine cables connecting Lamma Island from Hong Kong Island, Cheung Chau from Lantau Island and Peng Chau from Lantau Island respectively.
To introduce competition, the selected FNOs are required to open up at least half of the capacity of the subsidised network facilities for use by other FNOs for free. Village Telephone Company were awarded a contract under a former scheme, and their fluorescent green plastic pipes can be seen being laid in various places around the New Territories. However, if past performance is any guide, it will be at least 2022 before any major inroads will be made into the abominably slow services available outside the major urban areas of the city, and during that time the monopoly suppliers of broadband services in these areas, such as HKT, will have no incentive to improve their services.
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