ANALYSIS & OPINION: FTTH IN EUROPE
NEW KIDS ON THE RURAL BLOCK
ALTNETS COULD BE THE KEY TO CONNECTING RURAL AREAS IN 2021 MICHAEL ARMITAGE
F
ibre broadband is now in more European homes than ever before, but there’s still a long way to go. Te UK, for example, has a large fibre gap in comparison with
other developed countries, despite government backing to accelerate its delivery. Tis is especially true in rural areas. Tat said, the altnet sector – made up of
alternative providers to major players BT Openreach and Virgin Media – is working hard to change the situation. A recent survey by the Independent Networks Co-operative Association (INCA) revealed that altnets increased their full-fibre coverage by 50 per cent in 2019, covering 1.2 million premises across the UK. Tis is expected to have risen to 2.4 million premises in 2020. However, recent developments have made
nationwide coverage more difficult to achieve. Te UK government’s promise to deliver gigabit broadband to every home by 2025 was quietly scaled back in the Chancellor’s spending review in November. Instead, it has now set a target of 85 per cent
coverage, which is not too far away from the estimated 70 per cent coverage that commercial roll-outs have been predicted to achieve without state support. Meanwhile, the largest providers have
24 FiBRE SYSTEMS n Issue 30 n Winter 2021
indicated that the cost of reaching the most remote areas is simply not financially viable for them.
State of connection Some 96.5 per cent of the UK currently get ‘superfast’ speeds of 30Mb/s+, according to official figures, but only 34 per cent can access Gigabit broadband services. Meanwhile, an estimated 608,000 homes
across the UK do not have any access to a decent and reliable connection, which is defined as 10Mb/s+. In some parts of Scotland, more than four in five properties fall into this category, and in rural Wales, as much as 30 per cent of the population have barely functional broadband. Any reduction in government spending will
only exacerbate this situation further. Providers should therefore stick to the 2025 target, irrespective of the government’s position. Te cost of the growing digital divide
between rural and city areas is too great for the long-term future of the UK, so 2021 has to be a key year for building bridges, rather than burning them.
Bridging the divide Put simply, communities with a poor internet
www.fibre-systems.com @fibresystemsmag
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