BT Openreach has announced the full commercial launch of its top tier Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) service which promises download speeds of up to 330Mbps.
This means that from today other ISPs, or ‘Communications Providers’ (CPs) will be able to rent FTTP lines from BT Openreach to launch their own high-speed services.
Currently, BT’s FTTP footprint covers just 15 locations across the UK, where BT Infinity 100 is available. However coverage will increase as BT continues its £2.5 billion fibre rollout plan.
Mike Galvin, Openreach MD for Network Investment said:
“The commercial launch of FTTP is a major milestone. Whilst we believe that FTTC will provide speeds that are suitable for consumers for some time, these FTTP products will allow CPs to offer SMEs and other bandwidth-hungry users the option of even higher speeds – some of the fastest in the world – and build propositions which help to grow the market for these higher-speed services.”
For customers covered by the 15 exchanges, this means that eventually you should be able to, for example, order FTTP broadband with Sky TV under one bundle package.
BT: Upgrade FTTC to FTTP on demand in 2013
From Spring 2013, customers able to get BT’s FTTC (Fibre to the Cabinet) service – the up to 76Mbps BT Infinity 2 product – ought to be able to order in faster FTTP lines on demand.
Fibre to the Cabinet works by connecting a fibre line to a street cabinet, from where copper lines reach out to nearby houses. This is the so-called ‘last mile,’ which will be upgradable on-demand to fibre later next year.
Last week BT announced a live trial of 330Mbps in eight locations. As well as testing the service, the trial will to work out how other ISPs might price their services, by either offering FTTP on demand as a one-off price to upgrade, or spread the cost over the course of a contract.
BT has connected over 10 million UK homes and businesses with fibre (both FTTC and FTTP) and aims to have two thirds of the country covered by the end of 2014.
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