CityFibre says it has partnered with service provider customer Vodafone to trial 2-Gbps residential services in York, delivered via CityFibre’s open access fiber to the home (FTTH) network. The trial leveraged XGS-PON technology installed last summer on the York FTTH network – an upgrade CityFibre plans to roll out as standard across its network beginning this April.
Selected residents in York received access to the symmetrical 2-Gbps Vodafone Pro II Broadband service with new Vodafone Ultra Hub and Super WiFi6E Booster bundle, which the partners say leverages the only 2-Gbps capable home router available in the UK from a major ISP.
CityFibre says the 2-Gbps service serves as a steppingstone to eventual symmetrical 10-Gbps offerings. “After a successful trial, we’re a major step closer to bringing multi-gig full-fiber services to millions of homes and businesses across the country,” commented Michael Greening, product director at CityFibre. “But at 2 Gbps, we’re barely scratching the surface of our network’s capabilities. Thanks to our XGS-PON upgrade program, we’ll be able to offer symmetrical speeds of up to 10 Gbps in the future, further evidence that not all full-fiber networks are created equal.”
“We’re the biggest full-fiber broadband provider in the UK and recording our fastest ever home WiFi speed showcases the true capability of the technology and our Pro II Broadband,” said Max Taylor, chief commercial officer of Vodafone UK. “With the UK’s fastest router, we’re all set to handle the next exciting developments, so our customers always get the fastest broadband speeds possible, in all corners of their home at a great price.”
CityFibre has supplied FTTH infrastructure to Vodafone since 2015, beginning in York (see “Vodafone taps CityFibre for fiber-optic network link”). The companies announced an expanded agreement in November 2021 (see “Vodafone becomes CityFibre’s anchor customer for UK Full Fibre deployment”).
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Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher, Lightwave
Stephen Hardy is editorial director and associate publisher of Lightwave and Broadband Technology Report, part of the Lighting & Technology Group at Endeavor Business Media. Stephen is responsible for establishing and executing editorial strategy across the both brands’ websites, email newsletters, events, and other information products. He has covered the fiber-optics space for more than 20 years, and communications and technology for more than 35 years. During his tenure, Lightwave has received awards from Folio: and the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE) for editorial excellence. Prior to joining Lightwave in 1997, Stephen worked for Telecommunications magazine and the Journal of Electronic Defense.
Stephen has moderated panels at numerous events, including the Optica Executive Forum, ECOC, and SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. He also is program director for the Lightwave Innovation Reviews and the Diamond Technology Reviews.
He has written numerous articles in all aspects of optical communications and fiber-optic networks, including fiber to the home (FTTH), PON, optical components, DWDM, fiber cables, packet optical transport, optical transceivers, lasers, fiber optic testing, and more.
You can connect with Stephen on LinkedIn as well as Twitter.