Virgin to hang fibre from telegraph poles
UK cable operator Virgin Media said Thursday it is trialling the delivery of 50Mbps broadband to rural areas by hanging fibre from telegraph poles.
The old school approach will initially deliver 50Mbps broadband to the Berkshire village of Woolhampton, and will act as a trial for bringing broadband connectivity to consumers beyond the reach of existing fibre optic networks.
Virgin Media has already announced plans to extend its fibre optic network, which today passes 12.6 million homes, to 500,000 new homes and has identified more than one million homes in parts of the UK that stand to benefit from deployment of fibre over telegraph poles.
Neil Berkett, chief executive officer of Virgin Media, said: “This unique trial will allow us to understand the possibilities of aerial deployment and may provide an exciting new way to extend next generation broadband services. With everything from BBC iPlayer to YouTube increasingly demanding reliable ultrafast broadband speeds, we’re keen to ensure that all communities, in towns, cities and villages right across the UK, stand to benefit.”
Interesting that Berkett should quote these two examples, as he is a vocal opponent of net neutrality – once referring to the concept as “a load of bollocks”.
Everything Everywhere completes signal sharing project
The UK parent of T-Mobile and Orange, Everything Everywhere, said Wednesday that it has completed its signal sharing project, dubbed Smart Signal Share. Wireless devices such as smartphones, tablets and dongles, will now switch seamlessly between the two networks, depending on which signal is strongest.
Madrid to join the 100Mbps club this year
Spanish carrier Telefónica has indicated that it will install fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) connections across the Spanish capital this year, with 1.3 million homes and businesses in Madrid to be provided with 100Mbps connections.
Facebook deploys own Euro fibre network to meet demand
Mobile operators worldwide should be preparing for an impending surge in traffic over the next several years, with mobile users in 2016 consuming an average of 6.5 times as much video, over eight times as much music and social media, and nearly ten times as much games than in 2011.
Dutch take European lead with net neutrality
The Dutch senate has passed a net neutrality law that makes it illegal for ISPs in the country to filter the internet. The laws, which were passed unanimously earlier this week, means that all traffic must be treated equally and may not be blocked or throttled. The Netherlands is the first European country to adopt such a law, and the second country in the world to do so after Chile.
The move ensures that end users have
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