Wigton to be PIONEERS of NEW Broadband technology

Last updated at 11:11, Wednesday, 11 November 2009

Wigton is one of only 10 sites selected for testing Broadband Enabling Technology (BET), a new fixed-line solution for delivering broadband over much longer distances.

BET is capable of delivering a stable broadband service over lines up to 12km away from the exchange – more than double the current 5km limit for broadband.

Initial trials in Inverness and Dingwall in Scotland have been very successful, with lines of between 7km and 12km running stable 1Mb/s services. Where a second copper line is available, lines can be bonded together to provide a 2Mb/s service.

If there is funding to help meet the additional costs involved in deploying the technology, BET could offer a reliable and cost-effective solution to assist the Government’s ambition of delivering a minimum 2Mb/s service to virtually all UK homes.

As part of the initial pilot, Openreach – the part of BT responsible for deploying the technology – will be rolling out the technology to a small number of lines in eight locations across the country, including Wigton and Leyland (see list below). These sites are in addition to the existing trial sites in Inverness and Dingwall.

The BET equipment for the pilot is being installed by Openreach free of charge and the service is available to UK communications providers on a fair and equal basis.

Openreach will be contacting selected customers in each area to invite them to sign up to the pilot, which will begin on September 30. Participating customers will need to pay their chosen communications provider for their broadband service, as with a standard broadband arrangement.

Openreach is also looking to work with potential partners to identify funding opportunities to allow the technology to be deployed on a wider, commercial basis from early next year.

Jeff Wainwright, Openreach’s director for the North West, said: “We’re really excited about the potential of BET to extend broadband to the remaining not-spots.

“Thanks to BT’s past investment, the UK and the North West already boast world-leading broadband availability. By rolling out BET, we can help customers and assist the Government to realise its aim for a universal 2Mb/s broadband service.

“We’re keen to work with local and regional authorities and other bodies with funding to discuss how the technology can be rolled out to their areas.”

Iain Bennett, NWDA sector leader, digital and creative industries, said: “Broadband connections are vital to our economic performance, so BT’s rolling out of Broadband Enabling Technology at the North West pilot areas of Leyland and Wigton is an opportune development.

“We are constantly evaluating the ability of different technologies to enable the entire region to access broadband technologies and compete in a global market place. We are keen to see how this new technology will deliver broadband to homes and businesses located at the end of lines previously unable to receive broadband.”

Copper lines more than 5km long are generally unable to support a broadband service, as the broadband signal degrades with distance. BET, based on an existing business-class broadband service, is capable of boosting the broadband signal to up to 12km. The BET equipment has been designed to deliver speeds of up to 1Mb/s or 2Mb/s downstream and up to 1Mb/s upstream.

BET offers a more reliable solution for delivering broadband to not-spot areas than mobile or satellite technologies. Customers using these technologies to access broadband have to share the available capacity with other users, often resulting in lower than advertised speeds. In contrast, BET uses a dedicated copper line so customers do not share the capacity and can therefore receive consistently good, stable speeds.

Q. What is BET?

A. BET – Broadband Enabling Technology – has been developed by Openreach to provide a solution for addressing a proportion of those homes that cannot receive a broadband service due to “long line” issues. It has been designed on a reliable “business class” DSL technology platform called SHDSL, to provide 1Mb/s or 2Mb/s broadband services over lines much longer than has previously been possible for exchange based ADSL. By using the SHDSL platform and adding some modifications and the use of a remote unit, ADSL broadband can be transmitted over very long copper pairs, to provide customers in “not-spot” or “slow-spot” areas with a reliable, stable broadband service.

Q. Can it go faster than 1Mb/s?
A. BET can deliver a 2Mb/s service but to do this it is necessary to use two copper pairs, each delivering 1Mb/s. The BET equipment has been designed to support either 1 or 2Mb/s downstream and up to 1 Mb/s upstream.

Q. What are the benefits of BET over satellite or mobile broadband solutions?
A. Wireless based broadband services such as mobile and satellite deliver a defined data rate into a specific area. Any customer using broadband in that area will have to share the available capacity with all other users and will suffer further degradation in broadband speeds as a result of environmental factors. As a result the actual speed of these links is often substantially less than the claimed “peak” speed. With BET and other fixed broadband lines, each individual user receives dedicated capacity, resulting in a faster and more consistent broadband speed. BET is also not affected by weather, atmospheric conditions or other environmental effects that cause problems with wireless and satellite services.

Q. How much will BET cost end-customers?
A. During the pilot, Openreach will be offering the BET equipment to its communications provider customers free of charge. However, ‘end customers’ (i.e. homes and businesses) will need to pay their chosen communications provider to receive a broadband service, as with a standard broadband arrangement. It is entirely up to communications providers to set the retail pricing.