C&W Rivals BT With Four Times Faster Broadband Offering

Cable & Wireless is planning the rollout of a range of high-speed broadband internet services, which are expected to be at least four times as fast as the connections offered by rivals such as British Telecom and Telewest.

The telecommunications company claims that up to £50 million will be invested in ‘local loop unbundling’, which means that the new broadband services will be offered to nearly a third of homes and businesses in the UK by accessing British Telecom’s last-mile of copper wire connections.

Bulldog Communications, the LLU broadband provider which was purchased by Cable & Wireless last year, will be offering the new super-fast web connection from just £40 a month.

Bulldog chief executive, Richard Greco, said: “Experiencing the internet at 4Mbps is like going from riding a bicycle to driving a high performance sports car. It means you can download music, film or software files faster than ever before. Information is instant. It makes other broadband services feel like dial-up. This is the way the internet is supposed to be.”

Following pressure from media super-regulator Ofcom earlier this year, British Telecom slashed the price it charges rival broadband companies for accessing its last mile of cooper wire connections linking households to telephone exchanges by 70%.

In July, Cable & Wireless announced that it was knocked by tough trading conditions as revenues for its first quarter trading declined 9% year-on-year to £798 million.

Cable & Wireless: 01908 845 000 www.cw.com

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