Business broadband options limited

Firms in many parts of the UK have a limited number of options for their business broadband supply.

According to the head of Fujitsu's carrier division Bill Mackenzie, companies need to do more to learn about what choices are available to them.

Speaking to Cable.co.uk, he explained that while options may be limited depending on what part of the country an organisation is based, firms must find out more about business broadband.

Mr Mackenzie said: "There are good fibre options for businesses in most urban environments but that choice becomes restricted when you move from the urban environment."

He was commenting after the government announced a raft of changes to its business broadband connection voucher scheme in response to poor take-up of the programme.

A spokesperson for the government stated that over 3,000 small to medium-sized enterprises have already taken advantage of the grants, but this is well short of the initial targets.

The government spokesperson said: "Working with suppliers and local authorities, we have a strong programme of activity in place to raise awareness and ensure businesses know that these grants are available."

While companies based in most cities in the UK now have access to high-speed broadband, those in more rural parts of the country are often still waiting for improvements to infrastructure to be made in their area.

Firms without superfast business broadband could fall behind their rivals as a result of their lack of connectivity.

Fujitsu's director of network and telecoms Catherine Rowe said: "Businesses have to take some responsibility and initiative as well."

Businesses looking to move services into the cloud should evaluate the performance of their existing network and consider setting up a leased line or MPLS network.

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