BT admits fibre broadband modem replacement was due to glitch

BT has admitted it offered some of its fibre optic broadband customers new, improved modems due to fears over faults in its previous models.

The telecoms giant sent subscribers a letter that revealed they were being offered "an even better BT modem" for free, but failed to explain the reason for the move.

After being questioned on the matter by the Register, BT confirmed it had been replacing some of its modems with updated and "more reliable" versions, as some of the earlier modems it released were liable to drop connection.

"There has been no health or safety risk whatsoever associated with this issue, but it is obviously important that the connection doesn't drop if the customer is to enjoy their service," explained Openreach, the company's local access network business.

A BT spokesman said the dropped connection issue was down to a malfunctioning chip.

In the three months to September 30th 2011, 88,000 new customers signed up for BT's fibre optic broadband service.