BT dismisses overinflated fibre broadband charge claims

BT has dismissed claims made in a leaked Whitehall document that it has been inflating the cost of rolling out fibre optic broadband in rural communities.

A report unveiled by the Telegraph accused the telecoms giant of charging a mark-up of as much as 80 per cent to deliver faster broadband speeds away from urban centres.

Experts cited by the newspaper claimed BT could achieve the same levels of super-fast broadband coverage if its public subsidy was cut by £400 million or £500 million.

However, a company spokesperson told Computing that these allegations are "untrue" and insisted it is a "simple fact" that rural broadband rollouts cost more.

"Deploying fibre broadband is an expensive business and one that only makes sense if you're willing to accept a long-term payback period," they added.

The spokesperson argued there are "a lot of detractors" who are desperate to find "chinks" in BT's contracts with councils. These critics are "a bit miffed" that no smaller companies are involved in the Broadband Delivery UK process, they insisted.