The broadband provider announced that it “will connect FTTH to at least a quarter of the 4 million additional homes and businesses being added to the Virgin Media network”, as part of its ongoing £3 billion Project Lightning network expansion plans.
“Our £3bn investment to bring ultrafast connectivity to more parts of the UK is not just about better broadband, it’s about future-proofing the country’s network infrastructure with the best and most modern technology,” said Tom Mockridge, CEO of Virgin Media.
“While some companies talk a good game, Virgin Media is putting its money where its mouth is and laying fibre to the premise alongside our superior HFC network - delivering the fastest widely available broadband speeds.”
Backed by parent company Liberty Global, Virgin Media aims to connect 17 million premises to its network by 2019, which would represent the largest investment in the UK’s broadband infrastructure in more than a decade.
Its FTTH rollout has started in Cambridgeshire and Leicestershire with West Yorkshire, Devon and East Sussex identified for its next phase.
The announcement marks the latest stage of its transformation as “an alternative to the ageing copper telephony-based network offered by incumbent BT”, Virgin Media said, adding: “The plans are a significant boost to the UK’s ambitions to become a ‘fibre nation’.”
