In an update to Project Gigabit, the Government tweaked what it expects from gigabit-capable infrastructure
An updated new technical definition: In publishing an update to Project Gigabit (which will allocate the £5bn to help the deployment of gigabit-capable broadband), the Government updated its technical definition of gigabit-capable infrastructure. In the first phase of the project, a definition including 14 criteria was used. This has now been narrowed down to 13, and several of these criteria have also been amended. The initial reference to “products with 100 Mbps download speed as a minimum” has been removed. At first this could look like a loosening of the requirements, although it should help focus on services closer to 1Gbps. At least one wholesale product has to be capable of 1Gbps download speed at busy hours. Performance requirements have been defined in more detail, with upload speeds equivalent to 20% of the minimum download speed (there was a vague reference to “industry norms” before) and specific jitter and packet loss requirements.
The Government is now identifying premises to cover in Phase 2: The main focus of the project update from BDUK was the opening of a Request for Information on the Open Market Review (OMR) to assess the eligibility of premises for phase 2 of the scheme. A Public Review to validate the identified premises will follow, after which BDUK will group them into intervention areas. The OMR calls on suppliers with existing network coverage, or planning to build in the next three years, to participate in the identification of the premises.
The new criteria may not be final: There is a chance BDUK could review the technical definition within three months of launching the procurement system. Nevertheless, we have now got a clearer picture of what the Government is asking of infrastructure providers. While the introduction of stricter requirements cannot be ruled out, the Government will have to be careful not to set unnecessarily high thresholds for connections. The current approach should ensure satisfactory performance, at levels of which rural households are likely to be happy considering what they have had up until now.
