Government’s £ 5 billion Project Gigabit fund to improve internet speed for 1.85 million locals | Scientific and technological news

The government has announced regions where up to 1.85 million locals in England will see their broadband speed increase through infrastructure upgrades by 2025.

The investment is part of a £ 5bn package for what the government has called Gigabit project “Upgrade digital infrastructure in hard-to-reach areas”.

It is also part of the focus by the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sports on starting “high growth sectors such as technology and creative industries” as well as “accelerating the recovery. of the country after COVID-19 ”.

The areas chosen by the government were chosen so as not to conflict with the investments already planned by the telecommunications companies.

Instead, the Gigabit Project Fund will be targeted at the “bottom 20%” of the country where state subsidies are needed for the upgrade to all-fiber broadband.

Details released Monday indicate that “up to 1,850,000 additional locals in 26 UK counties will have access to internet access at a gigabit speed of 1,000 megabits per second – enough to download an HD movie in under 30 seconds.”

While the government estimates this currently brings the total number of premises to 2.2 million, it also warns that the number of premises “could change significantly” before commercial work begins, with the majority starting in 2023.

The initial target of achieving 100% coverage for fiber optic broadband across the country by 2025 has been dropped to reach 85% by that date.

When the funds were announced, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “The Gigabit project is the boost we need to deliver super-fast broadband to all parts of the country.

“This broadband revolution will energize businesses and people’s homes, as well as the vital utilities we all rely on, so that we can continue to improve and rebuild better from this pandemic,” added Mr. Johnson.

Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden said: “The Gigabit project is our national mission to upgrade rural areas with the fastest internet speeds on the market.

“Millions of additional rural households and businesses will now be taken out of the slow digital lane thanks to our massive £ 5 billion investment and one of the fastest deployments in Europe.

“This broadband revolution will create jobs, energize businesses and allow everyone to access vital services at lightning speed, helping us to rebuild better after the pandemic.”