Next Generation Broadband Launched

Businesses in Cornwall are to benefit from next generation broadband connectivity sooner than anticipated due to the work of a national telecoms provider based in Truro.

BT recently unveiled its plans to bring superfast broadband to Cornwall, but the completion of the rollout is not expected until 2014.

Communications specialist Datasharp has now launched Optimum Connect,  a range of products using exisiting next generation technology, to bring superfast speeds to premises in Cornwall, making next generation connection available today.

"Fibre optic infrastructure has been under development for many years," explained technical director Allan Williams to Business Cornwall. "Optimum Connect takes advantage of next generation connectivity today utilising all access methods available, including those offered by BT Group."

The announcement comes at the heels of Cornwall Digital Meeting Group's second meeting held on November 16 at the Pool Innovation Centre, which demonstrated the benefits of New Generation Broadband.

The event made use of the 100Mbit/sec broadband connection at the centre, and the demonstrations included High Definition video streaming and an open access test area for members to try their own applications such as file transfer, e-mail and remote working.

Paul Clark of Packet Ship commented, "the videos we were streaming from our servers in London were of a quality that would be impossible on standard broadband. This was the first time we have been able to show our next generation streaming capabilities at this speed on the public Internet, so even this first test has been invaluable to us."

Bernard Curren, Director of the Pool Innovation Centre said, "we were very happy to host this event and are impressed with the results. Demonstrations like this are invaluable to ensure the local
business community is ready for the opportunities that Next Generation Broadband will provide. We all need to consider how we use this connectivity to the advantage of our businesses."

Graham Bray, MD of CF Systems agreed, "the implications of this demonstration for Cornwall's businesses are huge. The connectivity on offer can clearly free people from traditional workplaces and allow us to secure new commercial activity for Cornwall."

More information is available at www.cornwalldigital.co.uk or click here.