BT chief says universal fibre broadband will take a generation

It will take a generation for all UK internet users to migrate to fibre optic broadband subscriptions, according to BT's group strategy director Sean Williams.

Speaking at the 2011 Broadband World Forum, Mr Williams stressed the telecoms giant is committed to encouraging more and more people to adopt fibre broadband services.

"Our business case is predicated on getting 20 per cent of our copper customers on to fibre," he explained.

The strategy chief argued it makes no sense to believe that everyone will make the move to super-fast connectivity in the near future.

"It's completely naive to expect to get everyone on fibre - not for a generation," he remarked.

Last month, the company announced plans to boost its fibre optic broadband footprint by delivering the technology to an additional 114 exchange areas across the UK.

More than one million extra homes and businesses are set to receive access by autumn 2012, while further locations will be included in the rollout programme over the coming months.