What cable networks are currently available in the UK?

There are a number of fibre optic cable providers in the UK. Some of these, such as BT, only provide fibre optic broadband whilst others, such as Virgin, provide all their services via cabling. In cabled areas, fibre optics can improve broadband speeds by up to four times of what consumers would have gotten by using a service from ADSL providers.

Virgin Media

A range of services Cable connection providers such as Virgin, offer a range of services to their account holders. These range from just a broadband service to a complete package involving cable TV, broadband and a phone service. They pride themselves on providing a constant speed - as opposed to ADSL - which can be affected by the length and quality of the cables used. The services are all provided down the same connection, which means that if anything goes wrong, then it could affect the whole system rather than a singular part. Virgin provides a broadband service that can be up to 40 megabits. This speed is affected by what cabling is available in the area, so customers may find themselves receiving a slower speed than advertised.

British Telecom

Last year, British Telecom launched their Infinity cable service. This service is being rolled out nationwide and because of the infrastructure that BT has in place already, it should be available widely quite quickly. There is a bit of installation involved in the upgrade. An installer needs to come in and replace the existing socket with a new one and customers also require a new home hub. However, these are very easy to install and the service increase is almost immediate.

The future

Other ADSL ISP companies are looking to roll out services within the next few years. These services will follow the same set ups that are currently available. With more cable companies launching into the arena, customers will have more choice than ever. Services such as Sky will give the customer more access to receiving their services from one provider and benefiting from the ease of such options. Fibre optics broadband and cable TV will change the speeds and services that are available nationwide, and customers will get service speeds that most of the world already has access to.