Netomnia Adds Maidstone in Kent to UK FTTP Broadband Rollout

Network operator Netomnia has today confirmed their intention to invest up to £21 million in order to extend their 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP – XGS-PON) broadband ISP network to serve around 72,000 premises across the town of Maidstone in Kent (England).

The operator, which last year secured £123m of funding (here) and has so far covered over 90,000 UK premises across various towns, ultimately aims to reach 1 million UK homes and businesses by the end of 2023, which is very ambitious for such a timescale. In Kent alone, they’re already building across Ashford, Gravesend and Canterbury (total investment of £42m) – reflecting around 141,000 premises.

The service itself is typically supplied to consumers via ISP partner YouFibre, which offers unlimited usage, symmetrical speeds, a Wi-Fi router, free installation and 24/7 UK based support. Customers then pay from £22 per month on an 18-month term for their unlimited 50Mbps package, which rises to £40 if you want their top 900Mbps plan. At present, there’s also a special offer that gives the first 3 months of service for free.

Alan O’Prey, Managing Director of Netomnia, said:

“Our latest investment in Kent will ensure around 72,000 premises have access to a reliable and ultrafast network, building on its already impressive growing talent in the area. We are building a full fibre broadband infrastructure faster than anyone else to level up the digital playing field and ensure residents and businesses can benefit for decades to come.”

However, the decision to build across Maidstone does come as somewhat of a surprise, not least because the area is already home to lots of gigabit-capable broadband rivals with active or planned deployments. For example, we have the established network from Virgin Media, as well as Openreach’s ongoing FTTP rollout. On top of that, Trooli are currently building up into Maidstone from the south and the town is also on CityFibre’s plan.

We should add that both Hyperoptic and OFNL also have a few small patches of FTTP build in the town, but those are so small as to be broadly insignificant.