The UK government has earmarked £50m in funding to install broadband hubs in every community in the country by 2015.
The so-called ‘digital hubs’ are part of the government’s superfast broadband strategy, which will see £830m placed for public tender…
The UK government has earmarked £50m in funding to install broadband hubs in every community in the country by 2015.
The so-called ‘digital hubs’ are part of the government’s superfast broadband strategy, which will see £830m placed for public tender in April next year to help stimulate private investment in rural networks.
“We want the UK to have the best broadband system in Europe by 2015,” said Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Olympics, Culture, Media and Sport.
“Our strategy, backed by a £830m government investment, will help deliver that by stimulating private investment and competition.”
The strategy outlines how the government’s Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) vehicle intends to set up a digital point in every community in the UK with a high-speed connection to the nearest exchange.
It also champions the use of varying technologies, including fixed, wireless and satellite, to reach communities where suitable, and offers guidance on how homebuilders can ensure buildings are broadband-ready.
The government’s strategy announcement follows confirmation from incumbent BT that, with public sector support, envisages extending its fibre network to 90% of UK premises in the near future.
Although no timeframe was disclosed, it is understood that the telco aims to match any public subsidiary it wins next year with its own investment to reach more rural areas. The company has previously announced separate £2.5bn plans to roll out fibre to two-thirds of the UK by 2017.
Welcoming BT’s commitment, Hunt called it a “great example of public funding and initiative stimulating private sector investment”.
However, a spokesman for local cableco Virgin Media, which also intends to tap the government’s £830m funding pot, cautioned against simply throwing money at BT.
“The UK will be missing an opportunity if this subsidy is simply subsumed into extending BT’s fibre to the cabinet roll-out,” the spokesman told TelecomFinance.
“These days, a genuinely future-proofed broadband means actually delivering 50Mb and the capability for more. Virgin Media does that today and will make 100Mb available to half the country by mid-2012; we now want to work with all interested parties to see how the country could extend that capability further.”
The government expects to select winning projects for its £830m funding pot in May 2011.
