Guaranteeing that any home or business within a region has access to a fibre (FTTH) connection, as well as varied available packages, is a promise that is easy to make but difficult to keep in rural areas, but this commitment guides the Axione teams in their daily work.  

On 1st December, the “fibre zone” status was given to two major regions in France, the Loire and the Aisne. Axione has shared this fair, socially minded objective with these two areas for several years. This brand new status was issued by telecommunications regulation agency Arcep. The first region to benefit from this status is the Loire department inter-municipality energy organisation (SIEL-TE –Syndicat Intercommunal d’Énergies du département de la Loire), as well as the THD 42 Exploitation company, to include an area covering 23 municipalities. Simultaneously, the Aisne Department Union of Energy Sectors (USEDA – Union des Secteurs d’Énergie du Département de l’Aisne) and Aisne THD were given the same status, covering 51 municipalities. As the operator of these two public initiative networks, we are proud that Axione is making a contribution towards the first “fibre zone” statuses being awarded in France. 

Beyond operating public telecommunications infrastructures, Axione is committed to providing active medium and long-term support for local authorities to promote the development of new digital practices and services. 

Multi-stakeholder projects co-led by Axione 

Axione forged its business plan through industrial and financial partnerships while providing concrete solutions, allowing it to face the challenge of providing access to digital technology in sparsely populated areas. 

Aisne THD 

As a representative of the Aisne Department Union of Energy Sectors (USEDA), Aisne THD (Axione, Bouygues Energies & Services, Vauban Infra Fibre, CDC) is a company dedicated to the department’s superfast internet project, and it operates, markets, and is partially responsible for rolling out the superfast fibre network in the Aisne department. 

THD 42 Exploitation

A subsidiary of Axione Infrastructures, which unites Axione, Vauban Infra Fibre and the Caisse des Dépôts, THD42 Exploitation represents the Loire department inter-municipality energy organisation (SIEL-TE), providing the technical and commercial operation of the THD42 public initiative network.

An explanation of the “fibre zone” status and the conditions to obtain it 

Awarded by the telecommunications regulation agency Arcep, the aim of this status is to label regions where a superfast fibre network has seen comprehensive rollout and is fully operational. It also makes it possible to accelerate support for this network by encouraging a mass shift from traditional networks to fibre. The marketing initiatives carried out in both regions also support this transition. 

In addition to coverage, obtaining the status is also based on: 

  • the actual availability of access services using a superfast fibre network for customers, for all homes and businesses in a given area; 
  • the availability of an FTTH package offering throughout the region. 

Thanks to a coordinated approach with its representatives, Axione provides a full range of services to its operator clients, which makes it possible to address all of the region’s needs and consequently benefits both residents and businesses.  

Axione is the first operator in France to have hosted all regional or national public internet service providers on the public initiative networks it operates, which then encourages the promotion and provision of attractive, tailored network solutions for the benefit of the regions’ residents.  Obtaining the “fibre zone” status highlights the success and strengths of the public-private partnership model, which has made it possible to accomplish objectives that serve the public interest. This also reflects the commitment of each stakeholder to create new digital infrastructure to bolster regional development and attractiveness. 

The benefits of this status 

Regions that hold this status will be able to:  

  • bypass the obligation to outfit new residential buildings with traditional (copper-based) network connections
  • allow Orange to “reduce the notice period prior to a copper-based network closure”
  • use the “fibre zone” INPI (French National Institute of Industrial Property)-registered trademark to promote the region;  – instigate a “virtuous installation/operation circle of high-quality customer-oriented fibre networks”

The allocation of this status is a testament to the considerable rollout efforts in these two departments in recent quarters, and the extensive rollout of fibre in sparsely populated areas, which are also known as public initiative networks

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It’s now a reality! The Loire department has 100% fibre coverage: everywhere and for everyone