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Bournemouth and Northampton next in line for CityFibre broadband upgrade
A £75m investment will see thousands of residential properties hooked up to full-fibre broadband services
Full-fibre network builder CityFibre, alongside internet service provider (ISP) partner Vodafone, has unveiled plans to splash £75m on building ultrafast broadband networks in Bournemouth and Northampton, as they move towards their goal of reaching a million homes and businesses by 2021, part of a previously-announced £2.5bn full-fibre investment by CityFibre’s VC backers.
Under the terms of their partnership – which was set up in late 2017 – CityFibre is already rolling out full-fibre – also known as fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) – broadband networks in 10 other cities around the UK, and live consumer services are now available to buy in four locations.
Vodafone has exclusive rights to supply services over the CityFibre network through to 2021, with options to extend thereafter.
In Bournemouth, CityFibre will repurpose an existing fibre network that can already touch nearly 21,000 homes, aligning it with its national network architecture to launch services during the summer of 2019.
In Northampton, more detailed planning is needed to enhance an existing fibre spine ahead of a roll-out commencing this autumn, with services expected to come online by Christmas.
“With the addition of Bournemouth and Northampton to our previously announced Gigabit City projects, we have now identified over one million UK homes that will benefit from world-class connectivity. Our roll-outs are gathering momentum and we’re now focusing on selecting the next wave of cities in the programme,” said CityFibre CEO Greg Mesch.
“Bournemouth is firmly established as a thriving digital town with a world-leading digital sector. An investment of this size strengthens our position of becoming a first-class, smart and connected digital place supporting the future needs of businesses and residents,” said Bournemouth Council leader John Beesley.
Read more about broadband
- Every residential and business property in Salisbury will be able to access full-fibre broadband in 12 months, claims Openreach.
- Shetland Islands Council is to receive £1.91m of funding to expand full-fibre broadband expansion to NHS sites on remote islands through the government’s Local Full-Fibre Networks initiative.
- Openreach has begun to assess how and when it might be able to shut down its copper broadband network.
Northampton Borough Council leader Jonathan Nunn said: “This inward investment will help us attract businesses, build digital skills and resilience across local companies and services, and support new startup activity.
“It will also support the adoption of new innovations such as digital health and care services or e-learning tools. This, in turn, will drive economic growth with the benefits being felt by everyone who lives and works here.”
