FTTH Conference 2025 Key Takeaways

Events

This week we have participated in a new edition of the FTTH Conference 2025 the benchmark event for the fiber optic and telecommunications sector. Once again this year, the conference brought together the main players in the sector to discuss the future of connectivity and the progress towards the Digital Agenda 2030 and the Gigabit Society.

The numbers of this edition have been impressive: more than 3,000 attendees, 150 speakers and a hundred sponsors and partners, consolidating the relevance of this meeting for the industry.

One of the key moments of the event was the presentation of the FTTH Council Europe’s annual report, which analyzes the adoption of fiber throughout the region. We highlight some significant data:

Coverage in Europe (EU39): 75%. While some countries, such as Spain, are approaching 90%, others are in early stages of development.

Adoption rate: 53%. Key metric for the profitability of fiber investments.

More than 430 initiatives in EuropeBoth public and private, driving the growth of the sector.

55% of deployments are led by alternative operators.We at Asteo are proud to be part of this category.

Investment needed for full fiber coverage in the EUEstimated at 100 billion euros.

90% coverage challengeReaching this threshold implies new challenges in infrastructure expansion.

The challenges of FTTH beyond 90% coverage

 

As FTTH coverage exceeds 90%, deployments in rural and hard-to-reach areas pose new challenges. From planning and permit management to cost optimization, bridging the digital divide requires innovative and efficient strategies.

In a key debate at the FTTH Conference 2025, our CEO, Pedro Abad, shared his vision with Johanna Reinkemeier (LBBW), Amaury de Gromard (Swisscom), Gary Bolton (Fiber Broadband Association) and Patrick Neary, moderated by Ian Adkins (Analysys Mason).

Fiber in rural areas

 

Our team was also represented at the table “Fiber Roll Out in Mountain Regions” by Manuel Garnelo Pereira, CTO of Asteo Red Neutra. In his speech, he highlighted the importance of fiber in rural development and the fundamental role of neutral operators in this transformation.

Garnelo participated together with Andreas Waber (Swiss Fibre Net AG), Boris Ilovar (Speed Connect), Christian Schläpfer (Swiss FibreCo AG), Ivan Botta (Isiline) and Innocenzo Genna (Isiline), discussing the challenges of connectivity in mountainous regions.

 

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Patricia Moreno Pacheco

Deployment Manager Director

Trained as an architect at the University of Seville and with international experience after her studies at the Leibniz Universität Hannover, she has a multidisciplinary technical profile. He stands out for his analytical capacity and leadership in telecommunications infrastructures, providing a highly consolidated strategic vision.

Her career began in civil architecture, working as a Municipal Architect and energy certifier. In 2017 she oriented her career towards the telco sector by joining Nokia as FTTx Network Design Engineer. For five years, he participated in large multinational deployments for operators in the USA, Italy, Chile, the Philippines and Germany. Later, at Inelcom, he took over team management and implementation support for the German UGG network, mastering the construction and last mile phases. All this international supervisory experience brought her to Asteo Red Neutra in 2023, where she manages field operations as Deployment Manager.

Away from blueprints and fiber optics, he is an active person who likes to enjoy his free time. He is passionate about climbing, paddle tennis and traveling, always looking for new environments to disconnect.

Laura Díaz

Marketing & Communications Director

With 20 years of experience, Laura has developed the communication strategy for national and international companies. Since the official launch of ASTEO Red Neutra, she has led its communication and content strategy as an external consultant, until her incorporation to the team.

She started her career as a journalist in the IT sector. She specialised in Communication, advising companies in various sectors (banking, asset management, private equity, insurance and insurtech or telecommunications). She led Evercom's Financial Communication department, in charge of the area's growth strategy and the management of the team and clients.

She graduated in journalism from the Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, in Venezuela, took the ABC-UCM master's degree in journalism, and complemented her education with studies in International Business at Dublin Business School, and sustainability at the University of Cambridge.

Married to Santi, she is the mother of two children and, whenever she has some free time, she loves going swimming and to the cinema or enjoying long dinners with friends.