The need for higher internet speeds appears to be a never ending struggle. The more that goods and services are available online, the more people use the internet, resulting in increased traffic. This is why EU funded the European project GigaWaM with EUR 3 million to modernise people's broadband access and get rid of traffic jams once and for all.

GigaWaM promises to improve the lives of Europeans and society in a number of ways. These include easier access to a broad range of services; increased access to telemedicine and eHealth, e-learning, and bridging the gap between urban and rural areas as well as the gap between eastern and western Europe. The project is expected to run until March 2011.

Experts believe that by 2016 broadband access will have to meet requirements of one Gigabit per second (1 Gbps). To put this in perspective, copper wiring, which currently handles our data communication needs, has a maximum capacity of 10 Gbps while the requirements for watching the upcoming generation of high-definition television (HDTV) is rated at 20 Mbps.

Although the situation may appear right in approach, if more than one HDTV were to be put in place in every home, and taking into consideration that several homes share the same network, then the current cabling will truly grind to a halt.

The solution is to be found in fibre optic cabling which utilises the science of photonics. Through photonics, bandwidth will be able to grow to 100 to 1,000 times the speed of today's broadband access. Optical networks do not need electrically powered components to split the signal; instead it is distributed using beam splitters. With wavelength division multiplexing, each end-user is able to transmit and receive a unique signal. This allows for fast and cheaper data transmissions.

Leading the project is optical components specialist Ignis Photonyx AS from Denmark. Also involved is Ericsson AB from Sweden, component manufacturer FiconTEC GmbH and laser diode vendor VertiLas GmbH, both from Germany. Also involved is Ignis Photonyx INC from Canada. Together they believe that not only will they be able to make this method of communication available, but also at a cost which is attainable for the average EU citizen.

The commercial possibilities are also potentially huge. When their deliverable product is launched in five years' time, the market opportunity could reach €230 million a year assuming conservative market penetration estimates.