INCA Claim Alternative UK FTTP Networks Reach 1 Million Premises

A new report created jointly by the Independent Networks Co-operative Association (INCA), UKWISPA and Point Topic has estimated that alternative network ISPs had expanded the reach of FTTP/H/B based “full fibre” ultrafast broadband networks to 998,500 premises at the end of 2017.

On top of that INCA predicts that, come 2025, the number of premises passed via full fibre infrastructure supplied by altnets could rise to cover “nearly” 14.25 million homes and business (roughly 50% of the UK’s population), although they wisely note that this “may include some double counting from overbuild” (the overbuild situation is currently a significant unknown). INCA also expects this to include around 4.8 million live connections.

The report further forecasts that an estimated 1.92 million premises will have the ability to order altnet based fixed network “high-speed broadband” services by the end of 2019, with an estimated 554,700 subscribers connected. At present it’s suggested that altnets currently account for 207,500 live connections on fixed networks and an estimated 100,500 on Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) infrastructure in the UK

The report also estimates that altnets with Fixed Wireless Access networks can currently reach up to a further 2 million premises, mainly in rural areas, although wireless coverage is notoriously difficult to pin down.

Magot James MP, UK Digital and Culture Minister, said:

“It’s fantastic to see the growth of the new companies building fibre and wireless networks. We’re creating the right environment to stimulate industry investment, and I’m delighted by the altnets’ ambitious plans to reach millions more homes and businesses over the next few years. We are also supporting these goals through government investment in new fibre networks, 5G projects and by removing business rates for new fibre deployment for 5 years.”

Malcolm Corbett, INCA’s CEO, said:

“This report shows that the altnets are making great progress in both urban and rural areas. They are delivering the future-proofed digital infrastructure the country needs for long-term prosperity. The investment and competitive dynamic these companies have introduced mean that we will get ultrafast full fibre networks and high-speed wireless broadband much faster than simply relying on the incumbent. Government support for the sector is tremendously helpful and with continued support altnets can speed up the deployment of new networks and services.”

The current figures aren’t a million miles away from our own estimate (here), which was largely based on older data gathered between April to June 2017 and this put the total at around 1.1 million premises passed for all ISPs (or 552,000 when only looking at altnet providers).

Similarly we recently helped to illustrate the huge impact of altnet providers via our article – UK Summary of Full Fibre Broadband Plans and Investment. Nevertheless we must caution that predictions for the future are much harder to gauge, not least because deploying FTTP/H is a slow and expensive process that can easily be delayed by complicated problems (wayleaves, permits and permissions, blocked cable ducts etc.).

For example, Virgin Media are currently running a fair bit behind schedule on their own network expansion and we’ve seen various delays with other FTTP/H projects. Suffice to say that what an operator aspires to deliver vs what is actually deployed within the same time-scale are rarely in perfect synchronisation.

Likewise until the issue of overbuild becomes clearer then it will remain very difficult to produce a reliable forecast of UK coverage for the future. Multiple overlapping fibre optic networks could also create an ugly civil engineering situation for locals (i.e. pavements being repeatedly dug up), will do little to help overall UK coverage levels and might not be the most efficient use of investment.

Otherwise INCA aims to update their report on a regular basis in order to keep track of changes in the market. Apparently the next update will be made available by INCA in time for the organisation’s annual meeting on 17th October 2018.

AltNet Broadband Report
https://www.inca.coop/sites/default/files/Altnet-report-INCA%20April-2018.pdf