Virgin Media have announced today that the Welsh village of Crumlin, Caerphilly will be the first in the UK to receive broadband delivered using electricity poles. Virgin have signed an agreement with Surf Telecoms, a utility telecoms infrastructure provider owned by Western Power Distribution to install broadband to the area. The trial starting next month will offer customers both 50meg broadband and Virgin Media's TV service, with the trial expected to run into 2011.
"We're already bringing broadband speeds of up to 50Mb and, soon 100Mb, to over half of all UK homes and are pushing the boundaries to ensure that homes right across the UK benefit from ultrafast broadband. Working in partnership with companies like Surf Telecoms, we can more rapidly and efficiently expand the reach of fibre optic networks to towns, villages and communities right across the UK."
Jon James, (executive director of broadband) Virgin Media
This trial is part of Virgin Media's plans to extend its network to cover more homes. 500,000 new-build properties are expected to be covered by the company and it believes that trials of this kind, and a similar overhead trial using telegraph poles in Woolhampton, Berkshire, can help it reach existing areas which lack next-generation broadband.
Very sensible VM. It might also scare BT into some action. Not that BT can benefit from borrowing other people's poles but the idea that VM might finally break out of its current strongholds should be motivational :)