The Federation of Small Business (FSB), Blackdown Hills Business Association (BHBA) and the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) have vented frustration after their views were excluded from an inquiry into the recent collapse of a major broadband expansion deal between BT and the Devon and Somerset councils.
A couple of the Government’s Broadband Delivery projects, including the Connecting Cumbria and Connecting Devon and Somerset schemes in England, have just passed important milestones in the progress of their state aid supported “fibre broadband” (FTTC/P) deployments with BT.
Worcester-based fixed wireless ISP Airband, which yesterday won a separate open market contract to deploy superfast broadband to 5,800 premises across the Dartmoor and Exmoor National Parks in England (here), could form part of a consortium that will bid for the full Devon and Somerset contract after it failed to reach a deal with BT.
The Connecting Devon and Somerset project in England has announced that a fixed wireless access (FWA) provider called Airband has won their open tender contract for deploying superfast broadband to 5,800 homes and businesses across the Dartmoor and Exmoor National Parks.
The second round of contracts for the Government’s Superfast Extension Programme (SEP), which is designed to push UK coverage of superfast broadband (24Mbps+) services from 90% in early 2016 to 95% by the end of 2017, has in some cases struggled to reach a deal with BT and the latest contract to fall foul is for Devon and Somerset in England.
The £94m Connecting Devon and Somerset project in England, which is currently working with BT to make “superfast broadband” (24Mbps+ capable FTTC/P) service available to over 90% of local premises by the end of 2016 and possibly 95% through a new contract, appears to have moved on from its earlier funding woes and prepared a tender.