A giant leap for BT; a medium-sized step for the internet
Just weeks after Ofcom’s announcement that it plans to back up companies that need to make ‘risky investments’ in next-generation broadband networks, BT has confirmed itself as the first on the scene. The announcement? That it plans to invest £1.5bn in the rollout of fibre optic networks to 10 million homes by 2012.
While the timeframes of the move means that the man on the street may not see the benefits of the move for some time, the announcement will be celebrated widely and rightly so.
The UK is currently lagging behind many other countries on network infrastructure but has a burgeoning music download and IPTV industry. These companies increasingly use more and more of the UK’s limited available bandwidth. As a result, iPlayer (mentioned in the BT announcement release), Joost, 4OD, Kangaroo (if it makes it through competition investigations) are all on course for a collision in the fight for bandwidth.
Ofcom’s support and BT’s move couldn’t have come at a more fortuitous time. While fairly late in the day where Europe is concerned, this move will do much to kickstart further investment in infrastructure from those telcos and ISPs that don’t want to be left behind in the fibre optic stakes.
The move is also the first step in shifting the super size brick that looms ominously on the horizon of IPTV providers, paving the way for next generation web services. Streaming personalised music stations comprehensive on-demand video, increased take-up of online ‘games’ such as Second Life and Google lively and many other services that require a lot of bandwidth should all result.
While we could be talking years for some of these developments it should be an exciting time for the internet as a whole.
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