BT has launched the latest phase of its next generation Fibre to the Cabinet ( FTTC ) broadband trial at the Glasgow Halfway (Scotland) exchange today. Local businesses will be able to take advantage of the trial for FREE until the end of March 2010, which initially offers download speeds of up to 40Mbps and uploads of up to 2Mbps.

Most BT customers in the trial areas with a PSTN line can get the service, though there are some minor exclusions (i.e. lines that connect directly to the exchange instead of BT's street cabinet). BT notes that 61% of SMEs consider faster broadband to be having a positive impact on their businesses.


FTTC delivers a fast fibre optic link to the operators street level cabinets, while the remaining connection - between cabinets and homes - is done using VDSL2 (similar to current ADSL broadband but faster in short distances) over existing copper cable; FTTC will initially deliver speeds of up to 40Mbps, rising to 60Mbps in the future. BT hopes to reach 10m UK homes and businesses by 2012.

BT will be rolling out its service to homes in the Glasgow Halfway area early next year and will be in contact with customers when the service is live. Businesses interested in receiving the trial should call BT Local Business on 0800 6335606 for further information.