BT has been awarded a contract to connect homes and businesses across Dorset to superfast broadband.
The £31.75 million deal will see 97 per cent of properties across the county get superfast fibre-based broadband by 2017.
This rollout will focus on areas that would not normally be considered by the likes of BT and Virgin Media and will complement BT’s own £2.5 billion rollout of superfast broadband. By Spring 2014, more than 260,000 locations across Dorset will have fibre-based connections from BT.
Read Recombu Digital’s guide to BT Broadband Rollout UpdatesMost homes and businesses will benefit from FTTC (Fibre to the Cabinet)-type connections which provides speeds of up to 80Mbps. Some will get the faster FTTP (Fibre to the Premises) type line which provides speeds of up to 330Mbps.
FTTP is more desirable than FTTC not just because of the speed but because it’s future-proofed. BT has already demonstrated that its FTTP lines can provide speeds of up to 10Gbps, if required.
FTTC is not a pure fibre connection unlike FTTP. The so-called ‘last mile’ is made from copper, not fibre, and as the case is with ADSL broadband, the actual speed you get with FTTC decreases over distance. The further away you are from a street cabinet, the slower your speed will be.
Those in the three per cent non-superfast area will benefit from a basic service guaranteeing at least 2Mbps.
Councillor Spencer Flower, Leader of Dorset County Council, said: “We know that some residents and businesses are frustrated by slow or no broadband access in Dorset, especially in rural areas – it’s one of the biggest issues facing our county.”
Bill Murphy, managing director of next generation access for BT, said:
“This is great news for Dorset. Fibre broadband will provide a strong, reliable connection to the rest of the world – opening new horizons, helping us to be more efficient and keeping us in touch with vital services.
“Faster broadband will help local businesses grow, attracting inward investment and boosting the local economy. If they thrive then everyone thrives – local businesses are the lifeblood of every community, creating jobs and stimulating growth.”
A £9.44 million chunk of the money comes from the government’s Broadband Delivery for the UK (BDUK) fund. This is matched by the local council. BT is bringing £12.87 million to the table taking the total up to £31.75 million.
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