BT pledges superfast broadband for two-thirds of UK by 2015

BT hopes to address rising demand for network capacity

The UK's broadband future received a boost today after BT announced plans to increase its investment in superfast networks from £1.5bn to £2.5bn to cover two-thirds of the population by 2015.

The announcement formed part of BT's end-of-year trading results, which saw profits soar to £209m, representing a revenue swing of £1.3bn after first-quarter losses last year of £977m.

BT chief executive Ian Livingston said that, subject to market conditions, the company will now bring its fibre rollout to a far greater proportion of the population.

"Assuming an acceptable environment for investment, we see the potential to roll out fibre to around two-thirds of the UK by 2015. This will take our investment to £2.5bn which will be managed within our current levels of capital expenditure," he said.

Livingston also explained that BT will enhance its TV offering, and build on opportunities with its Global Services business in Asia Pacific.

Matt Yardley, a partner at telecoms consultancy Analysys Mason, believes that BT's enlarged network rollout is right for the company and the UK as demand for bandwidth continues to rise.

"BT would always have been looking to increase its broadband network in time, and will be reasonably confident that they can make the deployment work," he said.

However, Yardley added that BT's pledge to cover two-thirds of the population with high-speed broadband adds fuel to the debate about how to reach the final third.

"Even with its new strategy, BT will see costs kick up significantly as it reaches the last areas of its rollout, and may encounter unforeseen issues. This underlines the difficulties and cost issues of providing broadband to the rest of the country," he said.

The move could also affect smaller fibre providers, and Yardley said that it will be interesting to see how they react to BT's announcement.