Digital Region

Thales and Digital Region announce the 'Go-Live' of superfast broadband network in South Yorkshire

Digital Region and Thales UK have today announced the 'go-live' of the superfast Digital Region network at an event at Thales's Doncaster site. This pioneering multi-million pound project has the potential to create thousands of new jobs and is set to revolutionise how the people and businesses of South Yorkshire use the Internet.

'Superfast Broadband' is now one step closer to being available to home owners and businesses, following the network 'going live' at Thales's Network Operations Centre at Carolina Court, Wisconsin Drive in Doncaster.

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) who wish to sign up to use the Digital Region network can now do so, and the first residents and businesses in South Yorkshire could be using the service by early 2010.

The network, which is only available across South Yorkshire, will provide guaranteed download speeds of 25Mb and above - the UK average is currently around 4Mb. The network will also enable very high bandwidth upload speeds compared to current service offerings. To illustrate the capability of these speeds – it will for example be possible to download a music album in seconds and a film in just a few minutes.

Digital Region is wholly owned by Yorkshire Forward and the four local authorities of South Yorkshire. Together they attracted European, regional, local and private investment of over £90 million, including £30 million from the European Regional Development Fund. Thales UK is responsible for building, managing and developing the network.

Jim Farmery, Assistant Director of Business at Yorkshire Forward, said: "Digital Region is a high profile and innovative project that is being keenly watched by the rest of the UK and the EU – when complete, it will position South Yorkshire as the transformational leaders in Next Generation Broadband Access technology.

"We hope the increased capability of electronic communication and data processing made available by Digital Region throughout South Yorkshire will act as a catalyst for existing and planned investments, and there is the potential for business to move to the region to take advantage of these benefits."

Terry Hodgkinson, chair of Yorkshire Forward, joined guests from Thales, suppliers KCOM and Alcatel-Lucent and the four South Yorkshire councils involved in the project - Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield.

The launch of the Network Operation Centre is on schedule and is a major landmark before the network is completed in May 2012.

Peter Batley, Managing Director of Thales UK's security solutions and services business, says: "Now the Network Operations Centre is up and running our attention is focussed on a number of ongoing trials that will take place between now and January."

David Holt, Chief Executive Officer, Digital Region, says: "The launch of the Network Operations Centre is a very significant milestone in delivering 'Superfast Broadband' across South Yorkshire. This is a truly groundbreaking project that will provide a major boost to South Yorkshire's economy, encouraging inward investment and providing a wealth of opportunities for businesses, local residents and public sector organisations."

Digital Region will place South Yorkshire at the forefront of the UK's digital communications agenda, with coverage of the network reaching 1.3 million people, 540,000 homes and 40,000 businesses – 97% of all premises in South Yorkshire.

The laying of fibre optic cables and installation of street cabinets for this next-generation broadband network is already underway, with the first connections anticipated to be ready for use in the market by early next year.

This is welcome news for the region, which has traditionally lagged behind the rest of the UK when it comes to broadband technology and access. Investment in Next Generation Access is happening in countries such as Korea, Japan, Holland, France, Spain and the USA, and the UK is under pressure to keep up. This investment means South Yorkshire is the first region in the UK to have superfast broadband rolled out and is one of the leading projects in Europe.