Next generation broadband in the UK is led by Birmingham

According to BT the Black Country and Birmingham are leading the UK when it comes to the development of the next generation of broadband communication in both businesses and homes.

Exchanges in Birmingham are now enabled for ‘next generation broadband’ services on more than 77 percent of its broadband and phone lines on BTs pioneering ‘21st Century Network’ (21CN) platform, according to an announcement from the telecoms giant. This is the largest percentage of any of the major cities in the UK say BT.

At part of its multi-billion pound hi-tech investment throughout the UK, BT has now installed new equipment that has allowed about 574 000 lines to be upgraded in the Black Country and Birmingham area, including Solihull, Sutton Coldfield, and Staffordshire.

This will enable communications providers to introduce new services for all much quicker, provide customers with much more flexibility and choice and will allow for more features all around the UK.

The West Midlands regional Director at BT, John Dovey said “Exceeding 77 per cent technology coverage in the Birmingham area is a major milestone for this exciting, world-leading project. Most of the foundations are now in place for offering next generation broadband services, but of course it will take time for companies offering those services to introduce products taking full advantage of this major investment. We are working with these companies to move forward as quickly as possible.”

He also said that the new network was “an entirely new broadband service, not simply an improved version of what already exists”. He added “Every aspect of the service is new. It will play a major role in helping Birmingham and the region as a whole attract and retain inward investment. The world of telecommunications is moving at a staggeringly fast pace.

In recent years, we have seen a tremendous demand emerge for broadband, but we are only at the start of a very fast and exciting journey. High-speed communications are increasingly transforming the way we live, work, learn and play. This massive investment will offer numerous benefits. Many homes and businesses will benefit from fasterbroadband, with speeds of up to 20Mbit/s possible – that’s more than double the maximum speeds currently available for more UK broadband users.

Communications service providers will be able to customise their products to more closely meet the needs of their customers. Delivered over next generation broadband, content services will be quicker, more efficient and offer a much wider range of features than those currently available, paving the way for people to enjoy many new experiences.

For householders, the benefits include high definition video and voice services, much-improved service quality and, increasingly, users will themselves be able to make changes and improvements, which previously could only be carried out by the service provider. Small firms will, more than ever before, be able to operate like bigger companies, quickly responding to changes in the market in ways once only available to much larger enterprises. For example, companies, such as restaurants, hotels or estate agents, will be able to quickly and easily voice-enable their websites so that their customers can access the information over the phone, rather than via a computer screen.”