Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 29 June 2022
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport
National Broadband Plan Update: National Broadband Ireland
Mr. Peter Hendrick:
The purpose of the national broadband plan is to deliver high-speed broadband to premises. When the contract was signed, the definition of high-speed broadband was 30 Mbps. We are starting with 500 Mbps because that is the benchmark in urban areas. This is about the urban-rural divide and ensuring the same service is available to rural dwellers as is available to urban dwellers. From a fixed broadband perspective, the project is clear. We are delivering a service that will match what is available in urban areas. In terms of mobile bandwidth, if we think about connectivity as a whole, ubiquitous gigabit connectivity is the ultimate ambition for the future in terms of where we see technology, demand and utilisation going. The roll-out of this fibre network will certainly be beneficial for mobile operators as well in terms of supporting their connectivity, such as mobile connectivity for people who are out on the road or whatever.
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