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BT to start two G.fast city pilots this summer
2015-02-01 11:02:00| Telecompaper Headlines
(Telecompaper) BT plans to test G.fast in two pilot locations in summer 2015 and hopes the technology will allow it to deliver up to 500 Mbps speeds to most of the UK by 2025, CEO Gavin Patterson announced. Connecting Cambridgeshire superfast broadband programme welcomed the announcement that one of the pilots will be in Huntington. The other will be in the Gosforth area of Newcastle. Around 4,000 homes and businesses will be able to take part at both locations. If the new technology proves successful, deployment will start in 2016-2017, and initial services offering a few hundred Mbps will be available to millions of homes by 2020. Speeds will rise to 500 Mbps as more industry standards are agreed and new equipment developed. BT is likely to deploy G.fast from various points in the network, with the pilots allowing it to assess different roll-out options. It is also planning to develop a premium fibre broadband service for residential and business customers who want up to 1Gbps. BT's FttC network now passes nearly 22 million premises, or about three-quarters of the UK. It is open to alternative operators on an equal basis.
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Category:Telecommunications