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Currently less than 1 per cent of UK properties can access FTTH services
The widespread adoption of fibre to the home (FTTH) broadband services will be spearheaded by a group of "challenger operators" seeking to democratise gigabit access, according to industry experts.
"There are a number of the challenger operators here in the UK who are focussing on plans to democratise gigabit services. This means that they are building out their fibre networks while simultaneously launching gigabit services at a price point that is within that attainable, elastic spend of your typical household," Ronan Kelly, president of the FTTH Council Europe, told Total Telecom in an interview this week.
Kelly estimates that around £10 billion of funding has been generated in the UK to fast track the rollout of full fibre broadband services, but that the movement will only start to gain real traction when it can be delivered in a cost-effective manner.
"When you have £10 billion of funding coming in for network build out, that’s going to create a certain amount of reach. When you couple that with those challenger operators who are bringing gigabit capable service offerings at a price point that everyone can afford, that will drive the adoption of it. All of a sudden you are going to see a step change in terms of what is acceptable," he said.
A recent report by Ofcom estimated that as many as 1.2 million people in the UK (approximately 2.4 per cent of the population) are capable of accessing gigabit services, yet other sources repeatedly put the figure at less than 1 per cent.
