In the past, DSL deployment debates centered around standards, modulation techniques, technology, and price. Today, operational issues are of prime importance. Operational issues, including provisioning service, loop qualification, monitoring, troubleshooting, fault isolation, and repair, are key to a successful mass deployment of DSL. Internet access alone is not going to add the profits necessary to make DSL a moneymaker. If service providers cannot automate the provisioning process, they will not be able to deploy service fast enough. Moreover, service providers cannot bill customers for extras and enhanced services. It is only by selling value-added services with DSL that carriers can hope to gain profits. Carriers with a data-only strategy will not be successful.

Mass deployment of DSL technology is fraught with difficulties in addition to the technical limitations of the technology and the fierce competition by CLECs and cable providers. As discussed previously, loop management and testing are the keys to a successful DSL deployment. However, without automated provisioning of the system and flow-through of all orders—new orders and repairs—as well as a dramatic improvement in customer service, technical support, and the adoption of standards-based DSL and interoperability testing, it will be difficult to deploy DSL successfully in the mass market.

Automated provisioning and flow-through of all orders is thus essential to any successful deployment of DSL. To be successful, an automated system must automate each element of the network, including CPE, Internet protocol (IP) DSL switches, aggregators, and core transport switches. The creation of automated provisioning systems is critical because providers will need to scale services rapidly as DSL deployments ramp up. If DSL is to be deployed in the mass market successfully, carriers need a system that can provision thousands—even millions—of lines quickly. Without such a system, carriers will not be able to roll out DSL in any large numbers.

Aside from operations, the lack of attention to customer service is one of the most troubling issues facing the broadband marketplace today. This issue is a looming issue for all broadband and high-speed access providers as well as for e-commerce providers. Customer service is a critical but overlooked ingredient of any e-commerce or broadband access provider.

Good customer service results in increased customer retention and provides a distinct competitive advantage that leads directly to increased market-share. The success of the DSL service provider hinges almost entirely on the ability to obtain and retain customers. Retaining customers is directly related to customer satisfaction. Customers should be continually updated on the status of their order or on any changes that have to be made to their order, such as a delay in receiving the loop from the ILEC or an update on a scheduled system downtime.

Standards continue to play a critical role in the evolution and mass deployment of broadband. The development and adoption of standards will set the pace for broadband development and adoption and will shape how the market for broadband services evolves. The benefits of standards have been seen in a number of different markets, such as VCRs, DVD drives, and Walkmans. DSL suppliers can expect the same model to apply to them.

The adoption of standards-based DSL has numerous benefits. It not only drives down costs but also speeds up provisioning. The adoption of standards reduces development and manufacturing costs and cycle times by moving industries down the scale curve faster than would normally occur without a standard. For example, the adoption of the data over cable service interface specifications (DOCSIS) standard in the cable industry has helped to drive down cable-infrastructure costs dramatically. Thus, the adoption of standards-based DSL allows service providers to mass deploy DSL. The lack of standards leads to market fragmentation, low volumes, and high cost. Without a standards-based adoption of DSL, there could be no mass deployment of DSL within the next few years.

Standards also promote interoperability of DSL technologies and devices and leads to increased customer choice. The adoption of standards and the interoperability of products allows the market to provide more product and supplier alternatives than is possible without a standard, increases the choice of providers, and provides a greater selection of products. The adoption of standards results in faster time to market with highly interoperable and integrated products, lower equipment costs for consumers and service providers, and minimized equipment problems for consumers.

Interoperability is key among different DSL technologies and equipment providers. Interoperability standards and qualifications processes also enable network operators to bid out new equipment orders to multiple vendors and reduce the complexity of installation and troubleshooting. Interoperability and standards help focus the industry on resolving other challenges necessary to reach mass deployment. National standards allow consumer-electronics and PC makers to bundle broadband equipment, such as DSL or cable modems, into new PCs, driving penetration and reducing service-provider costs for CPEs. Since the adoption of the G.lite standards, Compaq and Dell have announced plans to bundle a G.lite modem as a standard option on new PCs. Network interface standards allow subscribers to self-install home devices to the network, further reducing costs to service providers. As of September 2000, these PC OEM vendors have sold more than 500,000 PCs with G.lite modems built in.

Beyond standardization and interoperability, self-installation continues to be the holy grail of the DSL industry. Finding a way to move beyond service-provider CPE channels and into the retail market is the key to a successful deployment of DSL in the marketplace. DSL needs to become as easy to purchase and install as an analog modem is today. Consumers need to be able to purchase a modem at an electronics store or other retail outfit and be able to install it on their PC and then immediately sign up for DSL with little or no support.