 communicating over a distance. An alternative definition may focus on the utility of telecommunications, which is communication of information over a distance. The terminology may only be a century old, however the need for communicating and conveying information to remote locations (both physically and temporally) predates civilization and has existed since the dawn of humankind. An in-depth discussion and analysis of telecommunication methods of early societies is outside the scope of this text. The brief history below is intended to establish a context within which we may analyse present day broadband telecommunication systems. A major reason for the development of telecommunications in early human history was security. Smoke signalling or sound signalling would have alerted a friend to the approach of a foe. The means by which information was conveyed, the 'technology' in the above example, were fire and associated smoke or sound. These techniques were still in use by many indigenous societies when they came into contact with explorers from the 'old' world. These techniques are obviously limited by the extent of human hearing and sight, but relay techniques could be used to extend the telecommunications range. The extent of these beacons and their reliability was a function of terrain and weather, and therefore their utility was limited. As human societies evolved there was another important application for telecommunica- tions. As humans transitioned from a hunter-gatherer existence into complex farming communities, early forms of trade appeared. There was a need to convey messages between trading partners residing in remote places. Initially the messages were carried orally. Soon however, letters were being exchanged: a letter written on clay dates back to 7000 years ago [6]. As societies became more complex, the sending of messages between centres of governance and trade became more frequent and the speed of transmission more important. As a result, conveying of messages in written form using couriers bec