CityFibre To Build 1Gbps FTTP Network In Edinburgh

Businesses in Edinburgh are set to benefit from a new 150 kilometre Fibre to the Premise (FTTP) network being built by CityFibre and local service provider Commsworld, delivering 1Gbps speeds to the Scottish capital.

CityFibre has built a number of FTTP networks across the UK, including Peterborough, Coventry, Aberdeen and York – the latter of which is a pilot for a joint-venture between the company, Sky and TalkTalk to develop an alternative to BT Openreach in towns and cities – however Edinburgh is its biggest project to date.

The first phase of development will see 50 kilometres of fibre deployed in the city centre, reaching 7,000 businesses and construction will start this summer. It is hoped that Commsworld’s existing customer base will help the gigabit service gain traction within the business community.

Edinburgh FTTP network

The partners say the network will use the ‘well-planned city’ model which futureproofs the network by anticipating future demands from the businesses, public sector, mobile operators and data centre providers. The infrastructure could eventually be used as a backbone for a consumer service.

The Scottish government has welcomed the project, claiming it will help Edinburgh become one of the most digitally connected locations in Europe, while CityFibre and Commsworld say it will help satisfy demand for faster connections.

“With thriving financial, tech and media sectors, Edinburgh’s businesses are poised to take advantage of a digital head-start, providing them with a competitive advantage at home and abroad,” said Greg Mesch, CityFibre CEO. “We are seeing huge demand for ultra-fast connectivity and as we continue this shift to service based economies, a modern digital infrastructure could not be more critical to a city’s success.

Gigabit for business

“Commsworld is a perfect partner with which to transform Edinburgh’s digital landscape and we look forward to demonstrating the capabilities and contribution of next generation infrastructure to both the public and private sectors.”

“As a company constantly looking for new ways of improving communication solutions for businesses, we are hugely excited to have partnered with CityFibre to bring the benefits of pure fibre connectivity to our customers and to the City of Edinburgh as a whole,” added Richard Nicol, CEO of Commsworld.

“Ultra-fast, gigabit connectivity appeals hugely to digitally dependant businesses and this is only going to grow with time. It will soon become the standard, driving productivity, innovation and the bottom line.”

The majority of the UK’s fibre infrastructure is based on the Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) technology, which uses copper for the final few hundred metres of the connection, slowing down speeds. However it is hoped that the deployment of G.Fast will allow for 500Mbps – 1Gbps to be delivered over copper in the near future.

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