JT Global to increase mobile broadband network speed to 42Mb/s

JT Global is working overtime to improve the broadband connections and speeds of many homes across the United Kingdom. It was reported late last month that the Internet service provider would be conducting a broadband trial in Jersey to test out the waters. The trial began last January 3rd and will run the course of three months. The areas where the trial is being held include La Moye, La Rocque and Fauvic.

Graeme Millar, chief executive of JT, said: “Clearly it takes time to replace the island-wide copper cable network, and we nee to do that in stages to minimise disruption and gain appropriate access to the 42,000 homes.”

Aside from that, it was revealed that JT was also able to get £19 million from Jersey’s government in order to fund their broadband rollout. JT, which is state-owned, revealed that the additional funds would be used to replace the old copper wiring on the island with fibre optic cables.

On this, Millar said: “A fibre broadband network will be a huge step forward in the island’s telecommunications infrastructure. It is a technology change on a par with the move from an analogue to digital TV signal.”

In another move, JT’s mobile subscribers can expect to see an increase in their broadband speeds to 42 Mbps this coming April. This will make their service one of the fastest 3G networks in the world, with upload speeds of 5.8Mbps.

Head of Mobile Dave Newbold revealed that JT would be spending over £500,000 on the development.

However, Ian Campbell, vice president of Airtel-Vodafone, said that perhaps it would be better to wait for next generation 4G technology instead, as this technology would surely revolutionise the market as well as guarantee fast speeds for the users.

Campbell stated: “The programmes take three months to deploy, it is part of our GigaBit Isles programme to deliver the fastest speeds in the world to Jersey.” Although Airtel-Vodafone will continue to upgrade its own mobile networks, there would be limits on what can be achieved. “You’ve got to be careful with mobile broadband, the customer doesn’t always get that speed. It depends on the number of people using the mast, you can’t guarantee a quality of service.”