The inalienable right of use (IRU) is a type of telecommunications lease between the owners of a communication system and a customer of that system that cannot be reversed. The word “inalienable” means “may not be annulled, cancelled or reversed”. The customer acquires the right to use a certain amount of the system`s capacity for a certain number of years. IRU contracts are almost always long-term and generally last 20 to 30 years. The communication system can be a wired cable, e.B. a maritime communication cable, a fiber optic cable or a satellite. An IRU owner may unconditionally and exclusively use the corresponding network capacity of the IRU licensor during the specified period. The IRU “means the exclusive, unlimited and inalienable right to use the relevant capacity (including equipment, fibre or capacity) for any legal purpose”. [1] This is the bandwidth purchased, for example, after a submarine cable system has been sealed at the end of construction, and the maintenance contract (C&MA) between the owners.
It is a way for owners to capitalize on unused capacity or unheard of capacity after the system is commissioned. The Dark Fiber IRU (DF) “means the exclusive, unlimited and inalienable right to use one, a pair or more fiber optic strands of a fiber optic cable for any legal purpose.” With a contractual agreement from the IRU, the IRU buyer can use the IRU fibres unconditionally and exclusively for a long period of time, approximately 25-30 years. [3] These contracts require the buyer to bear a portion of the operating costs and maintenance costs of the cable, including any costs of repairing the cable after breakdowns. The right of use is inalienable, so that the purchased capacity cannot be returned and the maintenance costs incurred become due and irrefutable. Learn more about FindLaw`s newsletters, including our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. According to the Wall Street Journal, Dark Fiber was developed by AT&T decades ago, when it still enjoyed monopoly power. The IRUs allowed AT&T`s competitors to access the expensive submarine cables that only AT&T could afford. [2] There is still some controversy around the reservation of IRU as assets in a cross-company asset exchange transaction. Since UUs are technically rights in a physical part of a cable, they can be considered an asset, meaning that their costs are not part of the company`s operating results, but appear under tangible assets. The IRU is counted as if it were part of the physical facility of the company purchasing the IRU. [2] Today, so-called IRUs allow a telecommunications operator to purchase all types of telecommunications capacity and equipment at low prices, usually for periods of 20 to 25 years.
Since IUUs are technically rights to a physical part of an underground cable, they can be considered an asset. This means that their costs are not part of a company`s operating results, but of the line of tangible capital assets on a company`s balance sheet. For regulatory reasons, as a general rule, only licensed airlines have access to municipal support structures and rights-of-way. In short, the purchase of an IRU gives the buyer the right to use part of the capacity of a telecommunications cable system, including the right to lease that capacity to someone else. Small businesses that need a leased line between London and New York, for example, do not buy an IRU – they lease capacity to a telecommunications company that can itself lease a larger amount of capacity to another company (and so on) until there is a company with an IRU at the end of the contract chain. or has a complete cable system. In this case, the dark fiber is called “dark” because it must be illuminated by the owner of the IRU and not by the owner of the cable. The bulk purchase of dark fiber was usually handled by IEUs.
Owners of fiber optic cables usually do not sell their fiber, but offer URI for up to 20 years for unrestricted use. 10 to 25 years is a typical lifespan of fiber optic cable systems. The initial cost of purchasing a 20-year IRU can be a one-time investment. It is usually accompanied by ongoing obligations of joint maintenance. As a general rule, the IRU can be considered as a physical asset that can be resold, traded or used as collateral. The IRU contract defines detailed technical and performance specifications for IRU fibres. Specifically, it includes dark fiber acceptance and testing procedures, description of dark fiber physical channel, dark fiber infrastructure operating specifications, performance specifications (attenuation, chromatic dispersion, polarization mode dispersion, optical reflux loss), maintenance and recovery conditions. These conditions must be valid for the entire duration of the IRU contract. In addition, it contains specific measures and procedures in the event of changes to the IRU licensor`s fibre optic network, deterioration of fibre performance, etc. This website is protected by reCAPTCHA and Google`s privacy policy and terms of use apply. The e-mail address cannot be subscribed to.. .