Eircom unveils new high speed network

Eircom has unveiled its plans to build Ireland's widest high speed broadband network, with the roll out of its new "e-fibre" network from next week.

The telecoms firm is offering download speeds of up to 70mb/s and upload speeds of up to 20mbps to both residential and business customers. That is between six to 10 times faster than what it can offer today.

"With the technologies we see coming, it will be able to go up to 100mbps," said Eircom chief executive Herb Hribar, who described the launche of the new network as a milestone for the company.

It will also be offering the service as part of a bundle to customers, with prices starting from €40. A so-called triple play deal includes fixed line and mobile phone services. Later this year, Eircom will be rolling out its 4G LTE next generation mobile services, followed by an IPTV service in the autumn.

The e-fibre product will consist of a fibre network rolled out to local cabinets, with the remaining distance to the home covered by copper wire.

Eircom broadband customers in 32 communities, including Letterkenny, Ballina and major urban areas, will be switched over to the new network from Monday, covering about 300,000 homes. The aim is to then make it available to about 10,000 homes and businesses per month, bringing it to 600,000 by the end of the year and 1.2 million by June 2015.

The new network will only be available in areas where Eircom has deemed it commercially viable to upgrade the netwrok. Rural locations that are not currently served by Eircom's high speed broadband network will not be able to avail of the new technology.

However, managing director of Eircom’s consumer division Kevin White said such areas could be covered by the 4G LTE services, bringing high speed mobile broadband to customers.

Magnet CEO Mark Kellett said the move would extend its reach for its own broadband services.

“It’s a really positive step for the Irish broadband market, as it will offer a more consistent, reliable and high quality network to a greater percentage of the population," he said.

Separately, Vodafone announced that it also planned to begin offering fibre-powered broadband services from Monday. The company said speeds would reach up to 70mbps in some areas, and will be offered to 300,000 households initially.

Consumer director at Vodafone Ireland Marcel de Groot said the company would be offering a range of packages, many of them with no download cap, and had opted to keep things simple for customers. Packages will start from €30 for a standalone broadband line.