G.hn technology is essential in times of crisis

By Livia Rosu, HomeGrid Forum, Marketing Chair

With COVID-19 causing disruption worldwide as economies went into shut down, schools became closed and people were forced to work from home – it has never been more important for home networking to be fast, efficient and reliable. It is moments like these that truly show the importance of technology and how vital it is in keeping businesses and society intact.

At a time when people are increasingly reliant upon internet connectivity, it is imperative that the infrastructure supporting it is consistent, can carry high volumes of data and be fully interoperable for the vast range of devices expected.

With the increased levels of traffic in both data and voice during this period, telecoms operators started to see the strain on the networks – something that could be resolved by ensuring that networks have a strong backbone to keep up with ever-growing demands.

As people become more dependent on connectivity for work, entertainment and social connections, telecoms operators worldwide are developing their networks to ensure that they can keep up with the changes in capacity and bandwidth expectations.

G.hn has long been recognised for its home networking capabilities to offer data rates up to 2 Gbit/s and has the ability to uphold these changes. G.hn works through the existing infrastructure within a building, operating over coax, powerline, phone lines or plastic optical fiber, to carry essential connectivity throughout the entire premises. This advanced form of wired home networking ensures full coverage that delivers the high bandwidth and speeds that consumers needed during the period of quarantine and continue to need going forward.

This ITU-T standards-based broadband solution is enabling people globally to live their everyday lives as normally as possible with the help of technology. Whether working from home, streaming 4K films, enjoying online gaming or video conferencing, G.hn provides reliable backhaul, interoperability and high performance – ensuring a vast array of devices from mobile phones, to laptops and other gadgets can all operate efficiently within the same household.

In recent months, we have seen G.hn expand into a range of markets that require a strong backbone for high-quality, reliable connectivity. With home working and home learning set to be the norm for the foreseeable, it is important that innovations within this technology continue so that it can maintain the high demands for reliable, ultra-fast internet worldwide. In a time of complete uncertainty, the industry is working together to provide strong network infrastructures that can provide people with the connectivity that they need for as long as they need it – for this a future-proof backbone strengthened by G.hn is key.

As the spread of COVID-19 continues globally, millions of people are still confined to work from their homes. Local governments are joining forces to limit the spread of the virus while network operators are guiding their subscribers on the path of upgrading their home network coverage with minimum invasive installations, such as plug-and-play Wi-Fi G.hn extender devices. You can find the list of G.hn devices certified for home connectivity here, most of them already available on Amazon: https://homegridforum.org/certified-systems/