Telekom partners with Facebook to develop Virtual Fiber network

Deutsche Telekom is testing out a wireless multi-node system developed by Facebook in Berlin in an effort to deliver gigabit-speed internet to German households, the company said in a video uploaded to its YouTube channel 11 January 2018. Telekom is calling the wireless-to-the-building technology Virtual Fiber and wants to utilize it to bring gigabit-speed connections to households via 60 GHz radio frequencies. 

While still in its early test phases, Telekom said it plans to develop the Virtual Fiber network by installing antennas on traffic lanterns throughout Berlin that can transmit and reroute signals to deliver internet to households. Telekom said it will partner with companies like Facebook to develop these new technologies. 

It’s the first network of its kind to be tested in Germany, according to Golem.de. Facebook unveiled its experimental multi-node technologies Terragraph and Aries at its F8 conference in April 2016 as part of its efforts to increase internet connectivity in urban and sparsely populated areas.