Waterford was the location today (Friday) for the announcement of the 30,000th connection to the National Broadband Ireland (NBI) high-speed fibre network being rolled out under the National Broadband Plan.
NBI and Minister Ossian Smyth marked the milestone at Steineberg Fireplaces in Waterford which recently joined the network, availing of gigabit fibre service from Vodafone.
Peter Hendrick, Chief Executive Officer, National Broadband Ireland said: “In the last six months, the number of connections to the National Broadband Ireland network has doubled, with 30,000 homes, farms and businesses now connected to our high-speed fibre network.
“We now have connections in each of the 26 counties and 118,000 premises are ready to connect by signing up with one of our 60 retail partners. We’re hearing back from connected customers that minimum speeds of 500 megabits per second are transformational, for businesses looking to expand and diversify, and for families accessing multiple devices online at the same time.
“In County Waterford, one third of the rollout is now complete with over 5,200 premises ready to connect. I encourage Waterford residents to visit nbi.ie and check their Eircode to find out if they are one and sign up for updates."
Ossian Smyth, Minister of State for Communications, said: “Today marks another milestone in the achievement of Ireland’s Digital Connectivity Strategy which seeks to ensure that all premises in Ireland have access to gigabit broadband by 2028. National Broadband Ireland has now passed more than 118,000 premises across every county and has connected more than 30,000 premises to their full fibre network.
“I am happy to report that, through a combination of significant private and public investment, full fibre broadband subscriptions have increased to over 463,000, representing nearly 19.5% coverage of all homes and businesses in the State. This is increasing at a rapid rate as networks continue to be rolled out and upgraded. The Government’s objective is that by 2028, through a combination of investment by commercial operators and the National Broadband Plan, every premises in Ireland will have access to Gigabit broadband."
Minister Smyth added: “The provision of Gigabit broadband to businesses such as Steinberg Fireplaces can lead to improvements which can enable the development of the business, permitting expansion and increasing opportunities in Waterford and across the region. A growing number of businesses and industries, particularly digitally intensive enterprises, require Gigabit connectivity to develop and expand business models and applications to produce, distribute and sell goods and services more competitively.”
Managing Director of Vodafone Business in Ireland Sinéad Bryan, said: “As the largest fibre broadband provider in Ireland we understand how important access to high-speed, reliable broadband is to homes and businesses.
"We are proud of our partnership with NBI in delivering this high-speed fibre broadband to our customers across rural Ireland. At Vodafone, we play a part in helping SMEs innovate and transform through our connectivity and suite of curated digital tools.
"It is fantastic to see how fibre broadband is helping our business customers, such as Steineberg Fireplaces in Co. Waterford, to transform their operation and unlock new opportunities through digital solutions and enhanced connectivity.”
Mary Power, owner of Steineberg Fireplaces and a recently connected Vodafone customer in the Waterford Deployment Area, said: “We are delighted to now be connected to the National Broadband Ireland network through our local Vodafone provider. As a consumer-facing business, we understand the importance of being able to connect with our customers both in-store and online, be it through online payment facilities or through social media platforms.
“Having a good broadband connection has become extremely important for our family business, particularly since the pandemic. We now have an online shop on our website where customers can select their chosen fireplace from the comfort of their own home.
"We have a range of styles available and it’s great to have a place to showcase the designs through an online digital platform as some customers now prefer to shop online. We look forward to utilising the new high speed fibre broadband from NBI to introduce further advancements to our website.”
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