CityFibre warns UK could be left behind on fibre broadband

The UK is being left behind the rest of the developed world due to its slow uptake of fibre optic broadband, according to network operator CityFibre Holdings.

James Enck, head of corporate development at the telecoms firm, told delegates at the recent government ICT conference that the penetration of fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) in Britain does not even place the country in the annual Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development rankings.

Less than one per cent of UK properties have FTTH access, compared to almost 50 per cent in Sweden and more than 60 per cent in Japan, reports UKauthorITy.

He blamed the lack of uptake on people questioning the need for a symmetrical 1Gbps fibre optic broadband connection.

Mr Enck argued: "The real question should be, 'if we did have a gigabit symmetrical connection, what would it make possible?'."

Despite his criticism, BT announced last month that it will trial its FTTH service in around 1,000 apartment blocks from this spring, offering residents speeds of up to 300Mbps.