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Gigaclear greenlights rural broadband expansion in Oxfordshire

Fibre broadband ISP Gigaclear has announced plans to connect hundreds more homes in Oxfordshire. 

The ISP has confirmed that Otmoor will be the next community to be connected to its gigabit FTTP (Fibre to the Premises) network. 

This should see roughly 700 properties across six of the Otmoor villages, including Beckley, Elsfield, Horton cum Studley, Noke, Stanton St. John and Woodeaton. 

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Currently residents are having to contend with connections delivering download speeds of around 1Mbps, meaning if the BBC was to make good on plans to take BBC Three off the airwaves now, most people living here wouldn’t be able to get it

Lorraine Dixon, Otmoor Broadband champion said: “We had heard how Gigaclear’s network has successfully transformed internet access in other Oxfordshire villages, and were interested replicating this in Otmoor. 

“We held an initial meeting in the village hall and in reality, Gigaclear’s fibre to the home product sold itself. Demand for the network from residents, including young people keen to embrace social media, has been high since the start.”

Dixon admits that the need for gigabit fibre in Otmoor today is perhaps less pressing, as most residents plan to use it for entertainment, but others will be able to work from home, cutting down on the regular commute. 

Construction at Otmoor is due to start in May 2014 and the new ultrafast broadband service with a view to having everybody up and running by August. 

Gigaclear specialises in connecting rural communities and businesses that aren’t due to be covered by schemes like BDUK (Broadband Delivery for the UK) or the commercial rollouts of superfast broadband by ISPs like BT and Virgin Media. 

Matthew Hare chief executive at Gigaclear said: “The six communities in Otmoor will substantially expand the number of customers in Oxfordshire served by Gigaclear’s fibre to the premises network.   

“Once complete, Gigaclear will have invested over £3 million  in improving the Oxforshire’s communcations infrastructure, helping make the county one of the best places in the world to live and work.”

Gigaclear’s prices start at £37/month plus a £100 connection fee for a service that provides download and upload speeds of up to 50Mbps and unlimited download speeds. 

Image: Geograph/Steve Daniels

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