BT has committed to nearly doubling the reach of its ADSL2+ network in the next 24 months. The UK press reports that BT Wholesale is expected to soon announce that the network, which is currently will be available to three-quarters of the country by spring 2011.
Currently around 40% of the UK’s homes and businesses are covered by BT’s fast copper network, which offers speeds of up to 24Mbps.
BT Wholesale’s managing director of products, Cameron Rejali is quoted by the Times saying, “the announcement signals BT’s intent to offer the highest possible broadband speeds to as many people as possible. UK businesses and households increasingly will be able to choose the broadband service that suits their needs best, whether delivered over copper, fibre or mobile.”
The carrier’s commitment to coverage follows the lead set by the UK Government’s Digital Britain report released in June , which requires universal UK consumer access to broadband services of at least two megabits a second by 2012. The Government is investing around €221mn (£200mn) to extend the rollout of broadband services to areas where carriers deem it non-commercial.
Meanwhile BT telephone exchanges serving remote and rural areas in Scotland are to get a €3.3mn (£3mn) upgrade to increase access to broadband.
Finance Secretary John Swinney announced that an agreement had been reached with BT yesterday to boost capacity in remote areas where there is little or no access. It follows complaints from people in remote and rural areas that they either cannot access the internet or that the service they do get is painfully slow.
“While Scotland has high levels of broadband availability, the Scottish Government and BT recognise the frustration felt in some rural communities where people are unable to obtain a service,” he said.