Broadband ISP Fibrus Confirm Launch of 10Gbps Speed Upgrade UPDATE

UK ISP Fibrus, which is deploying a new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband networks across N.Ireland and the North of England, has today claimed that it now “offers [the] fastest broadband services in Northern Ireland” and has “launched” a “service at 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps)“. But no, you can’t actually buy this.. yet.

Consumers who read the official press release could easily be forgiven for thinking that Fibrus have just made a 10Gbps speed package available to homes, but so far as we can tell, they haven’t (nor did it show for business customers). At least, not yet. The top residential package is still a 1Gbps download tier with uploads of 300Mbps, so.. only about ten times slower (downstream) than the headline claim.

However, what they have done is confirmed their adoption of 10Gbps (symmetric speed) capable XGS-PON technology to their underlying physical network, which is actually an upgrade that they first confirmed last month (here). This should deliver various efficiency, speed, power consumption and cost improvements to their rollout. So a 10Gbps package is now technically possible in upgraded areas, but you can’t buy one yet.

The first area confirmed to be live with the “fastest speeds in Northern Ireland” (XGS-PON) is the town of Rathfriland in Co.Down, with the roll-out continuing at pace in partnership with the access technology provider Nokia. The provider plans to release its upgrade roll-out schedule in due course to allow consumers a view as to when they can upgrade to the new services.

Neil Isherwood, Technology and IT Director at Fibrus, said:

“Future-proofing our network for business and residential customers is always at the forefront of our minds. This technology is a game changer across the industry, and we’re incredibly proud to be leading the charge in Northern Ireland.

Over the next number of years, we are expecting to see the demand for 10Gbps capable networks to increase and as such we are committed to building the best network possible for our customers. We are investing in our future by preparing for a rapid upgrade via XGS-PON access technology.”

At present the provider has already deployed their full fibre network – using a mix of commercial build and public investment – to around 200,000 premises (mostly via older GPON technology) across parts of Northern Ireland and the North of England. But the operator is aiming to reach a total of 1 million premises over the next 3 years (by Q1 2026), including around 400,000 premises in N.Ireland, with the rest from England and Scotland.

UPDATE 2:58pm

Fibrus appears to have changed their announcement and are now saying that they will be launching a 2Gbps package, although we’re still awaiting some solid details. As stated earlier, we didn’t spot anything faster than their 1Gbps tier when testing in the first upgrade area this morning.