ISP Zen Internet Invests GBP3.5m in New UK Local Exchange Network

Rochdale-based UK ISP Zen Internet has today announced a new partnership deal with Cable & Wireless (C&W) that will see them invest over £3.5 million into their core infrastructure to build a new network of local telephone exchange PoPs (Points of Presence).

The move, which will provide Zen with 200 Ethernet nodes at local BT exchanges across the country, should enable the ISP to offer a broad range of new Ethernet and related broadband services to their customers. Meanwhile C&W will provide a new backhaul network to support the upgrade.

Apparently Zen’s new Ethernet portfolio will include delivery over Ethernet in the First Mile (EFM) using multiple copper pairs and NGA Ethernet using Fibre-to-the-Cabinet (FTTC) and Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) technology. NGA Ethernet services will be available from Zen’s 200 PoPs plus another 270 exchange locations.

Andrew Saunders, Zen’s Head of Product Management, said:

“Our considerable investment in building a new network of PoPs reflects our long-term plan to deliver services directly to our customers. Expanding our own network in this way allows us to provide more affordable services in what is a highly competitive and price-sensitive market, and we can guarantee an exceptional level of quality.

Ofcom’s recently announced proposal to increase price regulation of Ethernet leased line services demonstrates just how important these services are to UK plc. I am very pleased that we have already taken action to improve choice and value for business users.

By using a range of access technologies we can offer 10Mbps, 100Mbps and 1Gbps services and we anticipate that customers looking to move away from older leased line technology or Broadband services will be surprised at how affordable it is to upgrade to our new Ethernet services.”

The development follows last summer’s work to upgrade their existing unbundled (LLU) presence at four North-Western telephone exchanges, which included a successful test pilot project to deploy four Zen Ethernet PoPs.

Zen claims to have already completed the build of 200 PoPs, with 70 already live and the remaining balance going live over the next month.