In this modern age, we are reliant on broadband for our business. It dictates the speed at which we are able to respond to our customers and how productive our staff can be.
We have also by nature become less patient with advancements in technology and even though broadband enables us to respond speedily, it is also subject to restrictions. The best way forward is to ensure you have the best solution for your business and future-proof as much as possible.
Fibre broadband provides faster download and upload speeds than ADSL. With that in mind, there are two main types of Fibre Broadband; FTTC and FTTP.
These two acronyms define how much fibre optic cable is being used in a connection. Unlike copper cables, fibre has a glass core, which enables information to be transmitted through them using light rather than electrical signals. Fibre optic cables can deliver data at rates thousands of times faster than copper cables.
What is FTTC?
FTTC stands for Fibre to the Cabinet. FTTC uses the fibre-optic cables from the telephone exchange to the green, roadside cabinet and then, copper cable to the relevant business.
FTTC can achieve speeds of up to 76Mbps for downloads and 19Mbps for uploads.
What is FTTP?
FTTP stands for Fibre to the Premise, (also sometimes called FTTH - Fibre-to-the-Home.) When you opt for FTTP, you have fibre-optic cables transmitted from the exchange all the way to your business’s premises. This means that no copper telephone lines are being used in the connection, making for significantly faster internet speed.
FTTP provides bandwidths of up to 1Gbps for downloads and 50Mbps for uploads.
So, which is the better option for your business?
The main things to consider are Speed, Cost and Availability:
- Speed – FTTP is a lot faster than FTTC.
- Cost – FTTP is a similar price to FTTC. FTTP is only more expensive if it’s an “on-demand” order where there needs to be new infrastructure installed.
- Availability – It is likely that you might not even be able to have the option of FTTP because of where you are located. The rollout of FTTP is building steam under the likes of companies such as CityFibre but it will still take time.
Both options are viable for a business but you’ll certainly benefit from an FTTP connection; not only because the speeds are a lot quicker, but also because there’s less chance the internet will cut out halfway through an important email or call to a client. Ultimately, FTTP technology is more reliable and resilient.
Something to consider is some news we heard from attending Comms Vision. The essence of that conference was talking about connectivity, particularly the future of broadband. It seems that in the not-too-distant future, Fibre-To-The-Premises (FTTP) will become the new “standard” business broadband option to choose, therefore if you were able to get FTTP, that is certainly the option we would recommend to you. Interestingly, Openreach has stopped its roll-out of G Fast (which is FTTC technology) to focus on installing all fibre going forward and removing any copper cables.
FTTP requires additional infrastructure whereas FTTC uses existing infrastructure such as the copper wires but a device is fitted into the fibre cabinet to alter the speed frequencies. The rollout of FTTP is building steam under the likes of companies such as CityFibre but it will still take time. Additionally, if you have Fibre-To-The-Cabinet (FTTC) available then it is likely you’ll be much further down on the list for FTTP.
CityFibre Champion
We are a City Champion partner of CityFibre in Northampton, one of an exclusive number of City Champions across the UK that are strategically aligned with CityFibre, with a strong focus on full fibre business.
CityFibre is supporting City Champions like us, at BTT because of our passion and commitment to putting full fibre at the heart of our proposition because we recognise how it will help our local business community to thrive by unlocking their digital potential.
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