Fibre-optic internet could give VoIP traffic a boost

VoIP solutions as well as the economy would benefit if next-generation internet was available UK-wide.

Supplying optical fibre infrastructure to every home and office in the UK would offer greater economic rejuvenation than any other form of investment, Peter Cochrane has said.

In a blog entry for the IT infrastructure event 360°IT, the co-founder of technology consultancy Cochrane Associates wrote that it would cost between £5 billion and £15 billion to roll-out fibre-optic networks on that scale.

Universal access to high-speed broadband would potentially allow the entire country to access online digital services such as on-demand television, high-definition video streaming and IP telephony solutions.

Mr Cochrane explained that the sum needed to provide universal high-speed broadband access to the UK is "an insignificant amount of money" compared to that which needs to be spent on the country's basic infrastructure.

However, "the clock is ticking" on implementing next-generation access, Mr Cochrane added, as without it the UK could miss out on the networked operations and the manufacturing industry changes that such infrastructure will bring about.

Broadband subscriptions worldwide will rise to half a billion over the next year, according to Informa Telecoms & Media, which could boost global VoIP traffic.