BT to launch fibre optic service

BT Broadband, one of the world’s leading telecommunications firms, has been in the headlines a lot lately. Some of it was good news, at least for BT’s customers, when it was announced that the company was set on doubling broadband speeds in North Eastern UK. The other news wasn’t as good: Virgin Media railed against BT’s fibre network. And just yesterday, BT experienced a service outage that affected hundreds of thousands of its users.

So it’s actually quite refreshing to see something good about BT Broadband in the news today. The communications giant is, in fact, planning to launch a fibre optic service that can deliver 300Mbps to homes in several areas in the UK by Spring 2012. The service will be rolled out gradually, so only a limited number of people will be able to experience these immensely fast speeds.

However, BT has guaranteed that other users will be able to have broadband speeds of at least 80Mbps. This news was received warmly by the government, which wants the UK to have the best broadband in Europe by 2015.

BT’s super-fast broadband technology will be called Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP). The company has revealed that they are investing will over £2.5 billion in order to make the fibre available to over two-thirds of the UK by 2015. But of these areas, only an approximate 25% will be able to benefit from FTTP.

Trial areas for FTTP have been revealed to include Ashford in Middlesex, Bradwell Abbey, Chester South, Highams Park, St Austell and York.

Liv Garfield, BT’s Openreach chief executive, stated that the company’s latest announcement was “a significant step in the UK’s broadband journey.” She added: “These developments will transform broadband speeds across the country and propel the UK up the broadband league tables.”

Rival companies have already begun offering FTTP technology in the UK; however, the services are usually offered only to new housing developments. In a move to encourage more alternatives to BT, the government has ordered the telecommunications firm to make its ducts and overhead poles open to other operators.

Source – BBC