Hyperoptic Launches 1Gbps Broadband For London

Londoners will soon be able to experience 1Gbps broadband connectivity as a new provider Hyperoptic promises to take fibre directly to consumers.

The ISP was formed earlier this year by two former Be Broadband employees, Boris Ivanovic and Dana Pressman Tobak. And today it has officially launched its fibre broadband packages for homes and businesses in London.

“This will allow residents to work from home at speeds normally only available to the select few in the workplace, increasing productivity and reducing commuting,” said the ISP.

1Gbps Connectivity

The ISP says it can offer both upload and download speeds of 1Gbps (or 1,000Mbps), by running fibre directly to the premise (FTTP). And its pricing is remarkably competitive.

For example a 20Mbps connection (Hyper-lite) costs just £12.50 per calender month. The 100Mbps service (Hyper-active) costs £25 per month. But if users want the full fat 1Gbps service (Hyper-sonic), it will cost just £50 per month.

However a line rental charge (£12.50) also applies, as does an installation fee of £40. There was no mention of what data limits would be imposed.

But with pricing like this, it is clear that Hyperoptic intends to upset the existing ISP status quo in the UK by challenging its rivals with both competitive prices and a superfast connection.

Mistaken Preconception

“There is a preconception that fibreoptic is expensive and therefore, can not be made available to consumers,” said Dana Tobak, managing director of Hyperoptic, in a statement. “At the same time, the UK is effectively lagging in our rate of fibre broadband adoption, holding us back in so many ways – from an economic and social perspective.”

“Our pricing shows that the power of tomorrow can be delivered at a competitive and affordable rate,” she added. “This really is the driving force behind Hyperoptic and we’re thrilled to be the first to bringing this exciting proposition to market.”

But questions remain, as no details were provided about Hyperoptic’s actual network infrastructure. It seems to be building its own network however, but whose ducting is it utilising to do this? Or it going to utilise the sewer network like Fibrecity in Dundee, or Geo in London?

Network Expansion

“The copper-based networks widely deployed in the UK right now were not designed for data transfer and really can’t keep up with the demands of new consumer technologies,” said Tobak. “As we don’t have a copper network to protect, Hyperoptic can go straight to fibre based deployments designed specifically for broadband and other data services meaning we can make each Hyperoptic building a showcase for Britain.”

“Building affordable, workable digital strategies is at the heart of Hyperoptic’s customer offer,” she added. “Our mission is about enabling consumers to make the most of the value that technology can bring to their lives on a day-to-day basis without the usual frustrations of slow broadband connectivity.”

“Going live today, we really feel we are at the start of an exciting journey in terms of taking broadband to the next level in the UK,” she concluded.

Hyperoptic said it will initially roll out its 1Gbps services to “large residential and commercial properties in London, moving to other UK cities in 2012.”

But Hyperoptic may not be alone.

In April Fujitsu said that it plans to build its own 1Gbps superfast fibre network that would bypass BT’s street cabinets  and offer high speed connections to five million homes in rural Britain.