15 April 2013 – The UK needs to remove its broadband blackspots and increase coverage for the entire country in order to avoid opening another digital divide, warns network access specialist, The Kenton Group. This announcement comes at a time when many UK homes and businesses are still without basic broadband, and ahead of next week’s DSL Acceleration conference and exhibition. 

While the British Government has pledged to expand broadband connectivity to homes and businesses by 2015, nearly a quarter of the UK’s population currently cannot access broadband[1]. Furthermore it’s been estimated that approximately 2.5 million residents and businesses can only access less than one megabit per second (Mbps), which disadvantages commerce, limits access to vital services, and can increase isolation.

Despite all the recent attention given to superfast broadband that offer speeds of at least 80Mbp, The Kenton Group is focussing on plugging the gap by offering innovative solutions that provide access to those who have very slow access, or none at all.

John Larkin, Managing Director of The Kenton Group, says: “Digital technology is as important today as roads, bridges and trains were in the 20th Century. While the developments around high-speed broadband are incredibly positive for the country’s development, we must not neglect those who still cannot access broadband - we need to connect them and bring them up to speed! Looking to the future, every aspect of our lives will be dependent on the services that the digital network provides, therefore it’s critical that we address this now.”

At the event The Kenton Group will showcase its Broadband Enabling Technology (BET), which focuses on providing those without broadband access with a reliable connection and service; and the ADSL regenerator, Sprint which increases the speed of DSL services (ADSL, ADSL2 and ADSL2+) by more than 50 per cent, delivering high-speed broadband to both existing served communities and un-served communities.

The Kenton Group has over 30 years’ experience in designing and developing network access, connection products and solutions, and has been involved in many of the UK’s County Council PSN Programs. Its deployments are driven by the Government’s initiative to deliver a minimum of 2 Mbps to every business and home across the country, enabling users to quickly access web pages, use online services and stream TV and films.

If you are attending DSL Acceleration and would like to meet John Larkin, please contact Dana Corson on +44 1636 812152 (office) or +44 7795 615466 (mobile), or email [email protected].

For further information about The Kenton Group, visit at http://www.thekentongroup.com/, call +44 (0)1322 552 000 or follow @thekentongroup on Twitter.

[1] Source: Ofcom