Leading ISP offers 14.4Mbps

One of the UK's leading internet service providers (ISP), Vodafone, has announced it is offering broadband connection speeds of a potential 14.4 megabits per second (Mbps).

Base stations at a host of key locations around the UK have been fitted with first-generation High-Speed Downlink Packet Access technology that facilitates faster connection speeds and could also improve the use of VoIP hardware.

The ISP predicts that users benefitting from the service could access speeds of up to 10.8Mbps, with 14.4Mbps being the theoretical maximum figure.

Jeni Mundy, chief technology officer of Vodafone UK, said: "Sites with the greatest demand will be upgraded first with the 14.4Mbps capability. Busy areas of London, Birmingham and Liverpool have already received upgraded sites and the roll-out will continue across the UK on an ongoing basis."

Virgin Media is focussing on upgrading its fixed-line services to fibre optic networks and recently launched a 50Mbps service, while BT is spending £1.5 billion upgrading its own infrastructure.