Vodafone-CityFibre deal targets ultra-fast broadband expansion for 5 million homes and businesses

Vodafone unveils plan to build broadband network capable of reaching 1,000 megabytes-per-second

Vodafone said the UK is trailing behind major rivals for internet speeds

Telecoms giant Vodafone said on Thursday it would partner with CityFibre, a wholesale fibre network infrastructure provider, to bring ultrafast broadband to up to 5 million homes and businesses in Britain by 2025.

Vodafone said the deal would give it access to a superior product at a lower cost and under better conditions than the regulated wholesale terms offered by the current operator, BT’s Openreach, which it said had left Britain trailing major rivals.

“The UK has fallen far behind the rest of the world, trapped by the limited choice available on legacy networks. We look forward to working with CityFibre to build the Gigabit fibre network that the UK needs and deserves,” said Vodafone UK chief executive Nick Jeffery.

Chief executive of CityFibre Greg Mesch said: "This agreement will unlock the UK's full fibre future and is a major step forward in delivering our vision for a Gigabit Britain".

"With this commitment from Vodafone, we have a partner with whom we can transform the digital capabilities of millions of homes and businesses and establish an unassailable wholesale infrastructure position across 20 per cent of the UK broadband market", he added.

Reuters

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