Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 250: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will provide a detailed map outlining the broadband available in an area (details supplied) to include the details of the scale of the broadband available; the provider in same; the speed of broadband available; when broadband will be made available in the outstanding areas; the operators which will provide same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26550/09]

Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 251: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will provide a detailed map outlining the broadband available in an area (details supplied) to include the details of the scale of the broadband available; the provider in same; the speed of broadband available; when broadband will be made available in the outstanding areas; the operators which will provide same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26551/09]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 250 and 251 together.

Broadband services are provided by private service providers over various platforms including DSL (i.e over the telephone lines), fixed wireless, mobile , cable, satellite and fibre. In order to address a lack of broadband in areas where it was not commercially viable for the private sector to operate my Department entered into a contract with "3", a Hutchison Whampoa company, for the delivery of the National Broadband Scheme (NBS) in late December 2008. 3 is required to provide services to all fixed residences and businesses that are located within the NBS Coverage Area and who seek a service. The NBS will be rollout out on an Electoral Division (ED) basis. Details of the EDs in County Laois and County Offaly to be covered by the NBS can be found at: http://www.dcenr.gov.ie/Communications/Communications+Development/National+Broadband+Scheme.htm.

Challenging programme roll-out targets have been agreed with 3 and initial NBS services were launched in a small number of rural areas at the end of April this year. Broadband coverage in individual EDs will be made available incrementally during the coming months. The forthcoming availability of services to premises located within identified EDs will be announced progressively prior to their enablement on 3's coverage map which can be accessed on its website at www.three.ie/nbs.

Some 48% of the EDs in the NBS Coverage Area are required to be enabled by the end of December 2009, while all of the EDs in the NBS Coverage Area are required to be enabled by the end of September 2010. My Department is closely monitoring the rollout and has been informed by 3 that these targets will be achieved. As regards the exclusion of certain unserved premises from the NBS, it is important to clarify that, in designing the NBS, which was approved by the EU Commission, a balance had to be struck between reaching as many unserved areas as possible and minimising the impact of the scheme on businesses already providing broadband services in rural areas.

EU State aid and competition rules govern how States can intervene in areas where there are existing service providers. The nature of broadband networks is such that they provide a coverage footprint over a certain area rather than an individual link to isolated premises. It was essential to guard against the NBS coverage footprint spilling over, to an extent, which would be unacceptable from a State aids perspective, into surrounding areas already served by existing service providers.

Accordingly, to try to include individually unserved premises that are located within EDs deemed to be already served within the scope of the NBS would have given rise to an unacceptable level of market distortion and therefore, such areas had to be excluded. It is expected that over time, as competition increases and technology develops, service providers will be attracted to offer service to any such premises located within currently served areas. Details of the availability of broadband services in the specific areas not covered by the NBS are available at www.broadband.gov.ie.