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THUS & BT Bring DSL To Scottish Isles

Posted: 07th Oct, 2003 By: MarkJ

Operators BT and THUS have teamed up to roll-out a broadband ADSL network to three of Scotland's remote islands. The hi-speed network brings broadband to more than 13,200 business consumers:

BROADBAND TAKES THE ROAD TO THE ISLES

BT Scotland and THUS today teamed up to announce a broadband breakthrough which will bring the super-fast technology to three of Scotland's main island groups.

The communications companies unveiled plans to take broadband across the Minch and Pentland Firth to around a third of the population of the Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland.

The three islands' capitals - Stornoway, Kirkwall and Lerwick - will become the first island communities in Scotland to benefit from fixed-line ADSL broadband.

The co-operation between BT Scotland and THUS - with support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise - will bring broadband to more than 4,700 businesses and consumers in Stornoway, 4,300 in Kirkwall and 4,200 in Lerwick.

In population terms, the technology will be within reach of 31 per cent of the Western Isles, 39 per cent of Orkney and 33 per cent of Shetland.

BT Scotland will lease capacity on THUS's wireless links to the islands, so that islanders can be connected back to BT's broadband network on the mainland.

Islanders can now look forward with anticipation to spring when the extensive work of building the local network links between the two companies will be completed and they can enjoy always-on, near instant e-mail and internet downloads 10 times faster than standard dial-up.

BT Scotland director Bob Downes said today: "Bringing broadband to the islands is a major milestone in our rollout programme, signalling our determination to bring coverage to the most remote parts of Scotland. The complexities of the task are highlighted by the fact that it's taking the joint efforts of two communications companies and the enterprise agency to beam the technology across the Minch and Pentland Firth.

BT has made great progress to date rolling out broadband across Scotland - we already have more than 60 per cent coverage and if all our current exchange triggers are met we'll exceed 80 per cent. But it's a huge task to raise demand to these levels and partnerships such as this have a major role to play in taking us there. We are also exploring different avenues, including alternative technologies, to bring affordable broadband within reach of Scotland's smallest and most remote communities."

THUS CEO Bill Allan said: "This is a landmark telecommunication project for Scotland which will bring real benefits to the people of the islands. We are delighted to be involved in this innovative project which leverages existing skills and investment in Scotland to support the Scottish Executive's plans to accelerate broadband availability throughout Scotland."

HIE chief executive Sandy Cumming said: "The HIE network is committed to doing all in its power to help bring broadband coverage to as close to 100 per cent of our area as possible. Today's announcement is particularly exciting for the communities affected and gives added momentum to our efforts to make the service available across the Highlands and Islands as a whole."

With access to broadband, businesses in Stornoway, Kirkwall and Lerwick can gain a vital competitive edge in sales, marketing and customer service operations, and make significant savings in their operating costs.

Families can experience life in the fast lane with always-on, near instant e-mail and fast downloading of games, music, films and sporting clips.

Broadband users also have the added bonus of being able to make and receive phone calls while they're surfing or e-mailing.