A Primer on Fibre Optic Broadband
Fibre optic broadband is a new type of cable broadband that runs underground, in contrast to traditional ADSL broadband, which uses copper telephone wires from the exchange to the cabinet and then to the home. Fibre optic broadband is considerably faster than ADSL broadband and can provide broadband speeds of up to one gigabit per second (1Gbps or 1,000Mbps) in certain areas, making it the ideal choice for meeting our ever-increasing need for fast wireless broadband, online gaming, social networking, and internet TV services such as Netflix and BBC iPlayer.
Understanding How Fibre Broadband Works
Fibre optic broadband employs underground cables composed of inner glass or plastic that carry light signals, unlike copper telephone wires. Using these materials instead of copper wire reduces the loss of broadband speed over long distances as information is sent and retrieved at the speed of light. This allows for super-fast broadband speeds to be achieved even in homes that are farther away from the telephone exchange.
Different Types of Fibre Broadband and Their Coverage in the UK
Superfast Broadband: Superfast Broadband, which uses fibre optic or coaxial cable to the cabinet and then the existing copper wire cable to the home, has average speeds of at least 30Mbps (up to a maximum of 67Mbps). This is known as Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) or DOCSIS cable and is available to 97% of UK premises, which equates to approximately 27.8 million UK homes and businesses.
Ultrafast Broadband
Ultrafast Broadband, according to the telecoms industry regulator Ofcom, offers download speeds of at least 300Mbps and is available to 57% of UK homes, or roughly 16.6 million homes. Virgin Media, with its Hybrid Fibre DOCSIS cable network, offers the most widely available Ultrafast Broadband, covering around 53% of UK homes (16.1 million) with top speeds averaging 1,130Mbps. Openreach, part of the BT Group, employs a combination of Gfast technology and Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) to enhance average broadband speeds through the copper telephone wires to speeds up to 314Mbps. They accomplish this by placing a special pod on the side of the street-level cabinet. Around 10% of UK homes (2.8 million) can access ultrafast broadband from Openreach through BT, Sky, and TalkTalk. However, roll-out has slowed as greater emphasis is now placed on the delivery of Full Fibre Broadband networks, as described below.
Full Fibre Broadband
Full Fibre, also known as Fibre to the Premises (FTTP), uses fibre optic cables from the telephone exchange to the home, with no copper wire cable used. A variety of infrastructure providers are creating full fibre, gigabit-capable networks in the United Kingdom, including Openreach (used by BT, Vodafone, Sky, TalkTalk & Plusnet), Virgin Media, FibreNation (part of Cityfibre), Hyperoptic, Cityfibre (used by Vodafone, TalkTalk & Giganet), KCOM, Community Fibre, and Gigaclear. The Openreach Full Fibre network has reached over 10 million UK premises (with plans to reach 25 million by 2026, as seen on the FTTP rollout map) and can provide average speeds of one gigabit per second (1Gbps or 1,000Mbps), with potential speeds of 1,000 gigabits per second (1 terabit) in the future. Virgin Media has completed upgrading its cable network, with 16.1 million UK premises now able to access their 1 gigabit