Virgin Media announced that as part of its 'Project Lightning' the operator will accelerate the UK’s rollout of fibre optic broadband direct in the UK. The ultrafast broadband provider said that it will connect fibre to the premises (FTTP) to at least a quarter of the 4 million additional homes and businesses. Backed by parent company Liberty Global, Virgin Media plans to connect a total of 17 million premises to the network by 2019. The operator's FTTP service offers maximum speeds of up to 200Mbps for consumers and 300Mbps for businesses.
Virgin Media also has a Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) network in the UK which combines optical fibre and coaxial cable. The core network is fibre optic which provides ultrafast broadband to the street cabinet. Broadband is then delivered to the majority of premises using the Company’s superior coaxial cable powered by the DOCSIS3 technology.
Virgin Media said that it has already started to roll out the FTTP in Cambridgeshire and Leicestershire with work expected to start soon in West Yorkshire, Devon and East Sussex. Using new engineering techniques such ‘narrow trenching’, FTTP can be deployed at lower cost and more quickly in areas where demand is high, added Virgin Media.
Tom Mockridge, CEO of Virgin Media
Our £3bn investment to bring ultrafast connectivity to more parts of the UK is not just about better broadband, it’s about future-proofing the country’s network infrastructure with the best and most modern technology.
