Fibre optic internet is an essential service for the growing digital and creative sectors in the region argues Insider Media’s Kate Simpson.

‘High-speed internet is becoming an essential business element, especially within digital and creative industries – areas in which the North West is working hard to become a leader. But when it comes to speed of internet connectivity there is a risk it could get left behind. With this in mind the North West is taking the matter into its own hands.

The UK is ranked 21st for speed behind France, Spain and Portugal, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) study of net connections. “Next generation access (NGA) is going to be a priority for 2010,” says Andrew Halliwell, acting head of regional ICT policy at the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA).

The government has announced that it has £1bn to spend on making Britain’s broadband better. But that’s not enough to pay for everyone to get connected to fibre optic networks. So who should get connected first? The majority of UK broadband is supplied through copper cables, whereas with fibre optic cables a much higher speed of connectivity can be supplied. There is a lot of fibre infrastructure in the ground that could be used, it just needs to be “lit”. Once lit, this could be used to provide a Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) service.

This means the fibre is connected up to street cabinets but the last part of cable that goes to homes and businesses (known as the last mile) will go through copper cabling, reducing the speed of the service. A faster service can be achieved through Fibre to the Premises (FTTP), when the extra fibre optic cabling is added to connect the street cabinet across the last mile to businesses and homes.

The NWDA has been busy developing a strategy for NGA for the region since September. Halliwell says: “NGA is extremely important to ensure the North West is able to compete within the global economy.”

Manchester is leading the way and has various projects up and running; Liverpool is just starting to plan a NGA strategy; and Cheshire, Cumbria and Lancashire will follow on from there.

Liverpool

LIVERPOOL INNOVATION PARK
The park has an internal fibre optic ring that can carry a gigabit. This is connected to a high-speed fibre optic network via a service provided by tenant company AIMES.

The technology company specialises in delivering data centres and application development. It buys connectivity to the high-speed fibre network in bulk and then leases it to other tenants at affordable prices. Fibre is expensive for individual businesses to buy, but bulk buying brings down the cost, meaning AIMES can offer it at a similar price to normal broadband.

LIVERPOOL SCIENCE PARK
Liverpool Science Park also has a dedicated fibre optic source, which even lured one tenant from London on the basis of the connectivity. It’s not really surprising – a back-up system is place in case there is a problem with the primary source, so tenants will never have to do without broadband. It seems simple, but it is a must for modern businesses.

NORTHERNNET
There are media access bureaus at FACT in the city centre and at the Innovation Park, and internet service providers that already provide fibre optic broadband, notably Virgin Business Media. Andy Marshall, director of corporate sector, says: “Our entire next generation network is fibre optic and accessible to all businesses in the North West.” It comes at a cost that most smaller businesses can’t justify, though. In fact, the cost of a 100Mpbs connection in our region is many times higher than comparable city regions. If this isn’t addressed it could affect the potential for future inward investment.

The good news is that initiatives are in place to get us up to speed at more affordable rates. Manchester is part of BT’s expansion plans in which a further 21,000 North West homes and businesses will have access to super-fast broadband by the end of 2010. This expansion will take the number of super-fast fibre-based lines in the region to 335,000. It follows an announcement in 2009 that by early summer 2010 fibre-based broadband would be available at 20 exchanges in Greater Manchester.

A host of bodies in the city are furiously working to connect as much of Manchester as possible, one being the Commission for New Economy. Alex Roy, head of economic analysis, says: “We are investigating options for investment in next generation broadband to accelerate the roll-out across Greater Manchester and encourage take-up. Part of the assessment includes identifying existing fibre assets and the potential to exploit these further.”

Liverpool is also making progress, albeit without any support from BT, which has no plans to provide fibre optic internet in the city. The Mersey Partnership has formed a working group for NGA to look at the possibilities and is working with businesses to increase interest and demand. Some businesses are frustrated at being missed off BT’s initial plans.

CL5, a specialist search engine promotion company, set up the Digital Liverpool blog in collaboration with other city centre companies to highlight the lack of service. John Elcock, head of internet marketing, says: “We are frustrated about the provision in the city. There are peaks and troughs throughout the day.”

Richard Spragg of AIMES says the lack of high-speed broadband is already holding businesses back: “Most of the companies we offer services to don’t have access to a high-speed connection, so we have to build a connection upgrade into the package to continue to be able to do business with them.”

NGA is high on the priority list for furthering the opportunities for expansion and investment in the North West. It is essential for the future of our growing digital and creative industries that we get this right and do it quickly’.

Article quoted  from Feb 2010 edition of Insider Media with thanks, view original.