BT says Ponteland shows highest fibre broadband demand in north-east

The Northumberland town of Ponteland has shown the highest demand for fibre optic broadband of any north-east community, according to new research from BT.

Of all the people able to access superfast broadband that live in Ponteland, more than one in five have chosen to sign up - and the popularity of the service is continuing to grow.

Hundreds of local residents and businesses are seeing the benefits of the technology, which offers download speeds of up to 80Mbps.

Across the north-east as a whole, fibre broadband is available to more than half a million properties, while throughout the UK the service can be accessed by over 15 million premises.

Farooq Hakim, BT's Regional Director for the north-east, said the take-up in Ponteland has so far been "hugely encouraging".

"It's a good indication of the kind of appetite that exists for fibre broadband in our local communities," he added. "Access to this technology can play a major role in building the competitiveness of local businesses."