ISLANDERS AMONGST FIRST TO SIGN UP FOR THE WORLD’S FASTEST RESIDENTIAL BROADBAND
JT has announced that its fibre-to-the-home programme, Gigabit Jersey, has passed the significant milestone of 1000 homes now connected to its new fibre services. This figure exceeds expectations and proves demand among Islanders who are keen to take advantage of the benefits of fibre broadband.
Of the 1000 homes now connected, one percent have chosen JT’s Gigabit (1042 Mb) fibre service and become amongst the first to experience the world’s fastest fibre broadband. Meanwhile, three percent of fibre customers have chosen 100Mb services, which means they too are now experiencing superfast broadband and benefitting from the advantages this presents.
Dave Newbold, Chief Operations and Technology Officer at JT, said: “We are pleased to have surpassed the 1000 milestone and announcing our first Gigabit customers is a real landmark in our Gigabit Jersey programme. The high number of 100 Mb and 1Gb customers further demonstrates there is real demand in the Island for superfast fibre broadband services and we’re delighted that the Jersey community is showing such an interest in getting connected to the fibre network. The fibre trial was the first phase of our three-year programme and enabled us to gain valuable learnings ahead of our island-wide roll-out. With this completed, we are now rolling out fibre on an area by area basis, with the aim of establishing a point-to-point network by 2016, and along the way customers have a choice of services from 2Mb to 1 gigabit.”
JT’s Gigabit Jersey programme is progressing on schedule as the company is installing the cabling and equipment to connect properties around the Island to its new fibre network. So far JT has categorised 15,000 as ‘Homes Passed’ (ready for connection) and installation has commenced to get a further 8,000 properties to this stage within the current phase of the roll-out.
Lee Monamy was the first customer to sign up for a Gigabit connection meaning he can now access the world’s fastest broadband at speeds up to 1 gigabit (1024 Mbps). He said: “As soon as fibre services were available in my area I contacted JT to upgrade my 8 Mbps ADSL line to a Gigabit connection. Having fast internet access has always been important in running my IT business from home and I was one of the first customers to get a residential ADSL line twelve years ago, so I’m absolutely delighted to be the first to experience Gigabit broadband speeds as well.”
He added: “The installation was completed in just over a week and the speed test is off the scale and much better than I expected. The bandwidth is enormous and I can see the advantages the Gigabit connection will bring to my business. JT is certainly putting us on par with the Scandinavian countries, and I am excited to be playing a part by being the first Gigabit customer.”
Meanwhile, Iain Hall had previously received a 2Mb copper broadband service in his home so as soon as fibre was available in his area he also upgraded to a 100Mb fibre connection. He is now able to achieve wireless speeds of up to 94Mb within his home which has improved the internet experience for his whole family in a number of ways. He explained: “With two sons, 18 and 19, who regularly download movies, Skype and go online for gaming, plus my own keen interest in photography, sharing 2Mb of bandwidth brought with it a number of frustrations. So, as soon as I discovered the fibre network was available in my area I contacted JT to see what services were on offer. Having a 100Mb fibre connection means that upload speeds are now so much better and I can upload large quantities of photos much quicker than ever before, which is not only saving me time but making the experience much more enjoyable. In general we stream music around the house which relies upon an excellent internet connection and since fibre was installed this has been much faster and reliable, even our phones work better. The installation was managed professionally and we are now delighted to be enjoying the wide reaching benefits of fibre.”
What’s more the progress of JT’s Gigabit Jersey programme has recently been highlighted in a worldwide Telecom ThinkTank White Paper prepared for the Fibre To The Home (FTTH) Council, North America. In this report JT is identified as one of just fourteen global telecom operators worldwide now providing gigabit services and is credited as using fibre to attract business to our region and bring our rural areas into the digital age well ahead of many other places in the world.
Graeme Millar, CEO of JT said “We are very proud to be introducing one of the first ubiquitous networks and being credited in the FTTH Council’s recent independent global gigabit report underpins our efforts and highlights that Jersey is now one of the most connected places in the world. Being recognised as one of the most digitally advanced jurisdictions in the world provides an excellent profile raising opportunity for the islands as a whole, in a White Paper that will reach the global broadband market. Furthermore, to be considered as a pioneering telecom operator is another external recognition of our commitment to putting the Channel Islands on the digital map.”
Gigabit Jersey involves replacing the existing island-wide copper network with fibre-optic cabling and is due for completion in 2016, when every household will have access to JT’s ubiquitous fibre network. For full details of JT’s fibre rollout plans please visit www.gigabitjersey.com and for more information on JT’s retail fibre products see www.jtglobal.com/fibre
JT’s fibre broadband packages are available wherever fibre has been passed (Homes Passed) from £17.99 for 2Mb speed and up to just £59.99 for 1Gb speed.
About JT Group
Based in the Channel Islands JT is part of the JT Group, an innovative and progressive global communications enabler with a vision to become the partner of choice for global telecoms innovation. With over 120 years’ experience, JT has gone from strength to strength and is now the leading pan-island communications provider with international presence across Europe, Asia and the United States that has aided its evolution in becoming a leading supplier in roamed services. JT has invested heavily in a resilient off-island network, helping robustly connect the Channel Islands internationally and support their place on the global business stage
JT’s product range encompasses all the products and services expected from a cutting edge Tier 1 telecoms operator – from Voice and Data, Consultancy, Co-Location, Internet, Security, Cloud Back-up and Mobile, to Support Services and Managed Services. Supporting both domestic and business customers. JT are also widely recognised as the largest provider of Data services in the Channel Islands including Hosting and eGaming.
JT Group has recently announced the completion of its acquisition of the UK based company, Worldstone, a global provider of Managed Services. This strategically important acquisition will further enable JT to expand their provision of Managed IT Services. With partnerships in more than 100 countries worldwide, the acquisition of Worldstone opens up implementation, management and support facilities in the UK, Europe, Asia and the US for JT customers.
JT, formerly Jersey Telecom, is wholly owned by the States of Jersey and employs 436 people across its international operations. The company is currently implementing a point-to-point fibre optic network in Jersey due for completion in 2016 known as Gigabit Isles.
To find out more please visit www.jtglobal.com, www.gigabitjersey.com and www.worldstone.com
