€20 Million Fibre Broadband Rollout In Meath By SIRO

Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal Damien English TD has announced details of a €20 million investment programme in Meath by SIRO, the wholesale broadband operator building Ireland’s only 100% fibre-optic broadband network.  Encouraged by the success of its Navan rollout, where services are already live, SIRO now announces eight new towns for Meath. SIRO will connect Ashbourne, Dunshaughlin, Ratoath, Trim, Dunboyne, Mornington, Laytown and Bettystown to its Fibre-to-the-Building network. As a result, services powered by SIRO will be available to 21,000 homes and business in the county. Commenting about the addition of eight Meath towns to SIRO’s rollout, Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal Damien English TD said: “I have been actively advocating in Government for plans to help accelerate the rollout of high speed broadband across the country, so it is brilliant to see eight new towns in Meath get access to what is regarded as the international gold standard for broadband. Towns like Trim will now be on a par with cities like Tokyo and Hong Kong for broadband connectivity, so the possibilities are endless in terms of residents benefiting from the latest online services and businesses gaining a competitive edge.” Jackie Maguire, Chief Executive of Meath County Council, added: “One of the key aims of Meath County Council’s digital strategy is to help boost the economic and social development of the county through improved digital capabilities. The wider rollout of SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic broadband network, which will now reach nine towns in the county, illustrates how we are delivering on that promise. As a result, we will be able to attract further investment to the county, make remote working a more attractive option for people commuting to work and make innovative services like video consultations with GPs a real possibility.” John McManus, SIRO Build Director, concluded: “We’re delighted to broaden the scope of our rollout, with eight Meath towns added to our plans. SIRO is building Ireland’s only 100 per cent fibre-optic network, which means that anyone in Meath using our services are guaranteed the best broadband experience in the country as there is nothing faster than the speed of light. Considering the data demands in the future due to cloud technology and online streaming services, our Fibre-to-the-Building network means that we are future-proofing these nine towns broadband needs for decades ahead.”  

Expansion of Gigabit Hubs in Meath

As part of its expanded rollout in Meath, SIRO has put out a call to business centres in the eight towns to register their interest in participating in the Gigabit Hub Initiative, which is run in partnership with Vodafone. The initiative aims to spark a digital transformation by providing Gigabit connectivity to qualifying hubs free of charge for two years.  Recipients receive a 1 Gigabit broadband connection from Vodafone which is powered by SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic network. There are currently ten participating Gigabit Hubs nationwide. The aim of the initiative is to replicate the success of the Ludgate Hub in Skibbereen which is on course to help create 500 jobs in the West Cork region over the next five years.

SIRO has welcomed Sky Ireland to its family of retail partners offering its Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) broadband, with services now available to order in over 20 towns across the country. As the fastest growing broadband provider in the country, the decision to offer services powered by SIRO supports Sky’s roadmap for increased on-demand content services, which require high broadband bandwidth requirements.  

SIRO Broadband

SIRO, the open-access wholesale broadband provider delivering Ireland’s first 100% fibre-optic broadband network to 50 towns nationwide, has passed over 200,000 premises in its rollout to date. SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic technology is recognised as the gold standard for broadband connectivity internationally and is the fastest growing segment of the Irish broadband market with FTTH connections nearly doubling since the start of 2018 (Source: ComReg Q3 data) Using the existing ESB network, SIRO builds dedicated fibre-optic cables all the way to the home or business. This technology, known as “Fibre-to-the-Home” delivers internet connection speeds of 1 Gigabit per second. SIRO’s Gigabit connectivity is 26 times faster than the average broadband speeds in Ireland. (Source : Ookla Speed Test , Ireland August 2018)  

Sky Ireland Welcomed by SIRO

Welcoming Sky Ireland, SIRO CEO John Keaney said: “We are extremely proud of our partnership with Sky which is another milestone in SIRO’s mission to enable Ireland’s Gigabit Society. The seal of approval by SKY, Europe’s largest entertainment company, is testament to the quality of our network . They recognise how Fibre-to-the-Home broadband is transforming how people access and experience content. Sky customers, who can begin placing orders from today, are guaranteed the best broadband in Ireland.” SIRO is now live in 30 towns across the country, with 10 retailers offering connections to over 200,000 homes and businesses. SIRO is offered on an open-access basis to all telecoms retailers in Ireland.  SIRO has formed partnerships with 10 operators – SKY Ireland, Vodafone, Digiweb, BT, Carnsore Broadband, Rocket Broadband, Kerry Broadband, eNet, Airwire and WestNet – with more retailers expected to come on board as the company drives competition in the broadband market.

• Nenagh and Roscrea to be connected to SIRO’s 100% Fibre Optic Gigabit Broadband Network
• Overall SIRO network to reach 16,000 homes and businesses in County Tipperary.

Thursday 20^th September 2018 – SIRO, the wholesale broadband operator building Ireland’s 100% fibre-optic broadband network, announced today that it is adding two more towns to its network in Tipperary. At a meeting of Tipperary County Council (Nenagh Municipal District) SIRO outlined its plans to roll out its 1 Gigabit (1,000Mbps) broadband network in Nenagh and Roscrea. The two towns join Clonmel, where construction of the network began early in the summer. SIRO’s Gigabit connectivity will allow residents and businesses to avail of broadband that is three times faster than the best service available in Dublin (350 Mbps) and 10 times more powerful than the fastest average internet speed in Ireland. As a result, Nenagh, Roscrea and Clonmel will be on a par with leading cities like Hong Kong and Tokyo in the international broadband leagues. SIRO’s rollout will commence in the Abbey Court, Brook Lands and Ormond Drive areas of Nenagh from the beginning of October. Roscrea will follow in early 2019. When construction in the three towns is completed approximately 16,000 homes and business premises in Nenagh, Roscrea and Clonmel will have access to SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic broadband network. As SIRO is an open access wholesale provider, customers will purchase broadband services from one of SIRO’s retail partners when services go live in Clonmel late 2018 and Nenagh in Early 2019. The TLI Group, which has already worked with SIRO in Clonmel and in other towns in the South and South West, has been appointed as build partner for Nenagh and Roscrea. SIRO’s Fibre-to-the-Building technology is recognised as the gold standard for broadband connectivity internationally and is 100% fibre-optic, with no copper at any point to slow it down. For context, downloading a high definition (HD) film of 4 GB (Gigabytes) with a 10 Mbps connection takes an hour - with SIRO it takes 30 seconds. This means that the internet experience of Nenagh, Roscrea and Clonmel will be transformed, catapulting the town into the international leagues for broadband connectivity creating a platform for future economic development in the region. Aoife Ni Lochlainn of SIRO said: “SIRO is delighted to be bringing 100% fibre optic broadband to the people of Nenagh, Roscrea and Clonmel. This will have a transformational effect on the digital environment of these three towns, allowing businesses to compete online with their international peers and helping local entrepreneurs and businesses to bring their ideas to life, trading effortlessly around the world. The internet is now at the centre of or lives, whether it’s talking to our loved ones overseas, streaming movies, or selling products to the farthest corners of the globe. Having the same Gigabit connectivity as a city like Tokyo means that residents in Nenagh, Roscrea and Clonmel will experience the latest advances in online education, entertainment and remote working giving them the opportunity to pursue their dream without leaving their town.” SIRO is a joint venture of ESB and Vodafone which is investing €450 million in building Ireland’s first 100% Fibre-to-the-Building broadband network. Using the existing ESB network, SIRO delivers fibre optic cables all the way to the building. This technology, known as Fibre-to-the-Building, has no copper connections at any point to slow down the network and delivers 1 Gigabit speeds. The wholesale broadband operator’s network is now live in 30 towns across the country, with 10 retailers offering connections to over 185,000 homes and businesses. SIRO is offered on an open-access basis to all telecoms retailers in Ireland.  SIRO has formed partnerships with 10 operators – Vodafone, Digiweb, Sky, BT, Carnsore Broadband, Rocket Broadband, Kerry Broadband, eNet, Airwire and WestNet – with more retailers expected to come on board as the company drives competition in the wholesale broadband market. To register for updates about SIRO, please visit siro.ie/register-your-interest/

• SIRO announces €60 million investment to make Ireland’s fastest broadband available to over 75,000 homes and businesses in Cork city and towns
• Cork City (including Little Island and Ballincollig) joined by Midleton, Carrigtwohill, Blarney, Tower and Charleville as new “Gigabit Towns”
• Huawei appointed as build partner for Cork city (65,000 homes and businesses) with TLI Group appointed to oversee rollout services in five new Cork towns (10,000 premises)
• Overall SIRO network to reach 85,000 in County Cork.

17^th September 2018 – An Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Simon Coveney TD has launched a new SIRO plan to provide Cork city with the best access to the most powerful broadband services in Ireland compared to other cities in the country. It marks the first time that SIRO Gigabit broadband will be built in a city of the scale of Cork, with over 65,000 homes and business premises targeted. Building on the successful deployment of SIRO in the Cork towns of Carrigaline, Skibbereen and Mallow, SIRO’s Cork footprint will expand to include a further 10,000 premises in five new towns - Carrigtwohill, Midleton, Blarney, Tower and Charleville. SIRO has built a network of over 185,000 premises in 40 towns around Ireland and Cork (totalling 85,000 premises) will be the largest single SIRO investment, with the €60 million construction plans announced today bringing the wholesale broadband operator’s total spend in the county to €70 million. SIRO has appointed Huawei as its build partner for the Cork city rollout marking the latest in a series of partnerships between the two companies. Huawei is providing end-to-end network equipment for phase one of SIRO’s rollout to 50 regional towns and is currently SIRO’s build partner in Athlone. The two companies also collaborated to run a successful trial of XGS-PON technology on SIRO’s 100% fibre network, which achieved speeds of 10 Gigabits per second. The TLI Group, which has already worked with SIRO on its Carrigaline rollout, has also been appointed to deliver Gigabit connectivity to five new towns added to the wholesale broadband operator’s construction plans. Carrigtwohill, Midleton, Blarney, Tower and Charleville will now also gain access to SIRO’s Fibre-to-the-Building technology, which is recognised as the gold standard for broadband connectivity internationally and is 100% fibre-optic, with no copper at any point to slow it down. Commenting on the announcement, An Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Simon Coveney TD said: “Gigabit connectivity will have a transformative effect on Cork city as Fibre-to-the-Building is recognised as the gold standard for broadband internationally. As a result, this will give Cork businesses a head start against their peers both at home and internationally, as well as giving homes access to the latest innovative digital services. This substantial investment by SIRO is another sign of how Government has encouraged investment by the private sector to boost our broadband capability. Cork stands to benefit substantially as highlighted by 10 other towns in the county all forming part of SIRO’s rollout.” Sean Atkinson, CEO of SIRO, added: “While Cork is traditionally seen as the second capital of Ireland, today’s announcement will firmly establish it as the broadband capital of Ireland. Our Gigabit connectivity will complement Cork’s rich technology heritage and put it on a par with international cities like Hong Kong and Tokyo. Cork city is ideally placed to leverage this with in excess of one million square foot of office space due to come on-stream over the next year, with rental prices less than half the price of equivalent space in Dublin on average; a 23% lower cost of living; and a talented workforce with half of the Cork population under 35 years of age. SIRO is proud to help power a digital transformation in the city, as well as the five new towns revealed today, benefiting residents and businesses alike.” Eric Yang, President of the Vodafone Account at Huawei, also said: “Huawei is delighted to be delivering SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic broadband to Cork City, designing and building a network that will future proof Cork City’s broadband requirements for generations.” Speaking at the launch, Cork Chamber President Bill O’Connell added: “Given the strong growth of sectors such as global financial services, fintech, ICT, SaaS and cyber security in Cork, it is absolutely essential that business is supported by the best quality connectivity. We have the lowest latency transatlantic connection in Europe, new connections to mainland Europe in planning and now the local connectivity to match. It builds further resilience for an economy increasingly driven by data.” SIRO is a joint venture of ESB and Vodafone which is investing €450 million in building Ireland’s first 100% Fibre-to-the-Building broadband network. Using the existing ESB network, SIRO delivers fibre optic cables all the way to the building. This technology, known as Fibre-to-the-Building, has no copper connections at any point to slow down the network and delivers 1 Gigabit speeds. For context, downloading a high definition (HD) film of 4 GB (Gigabytes) with a 10 Mbps connection takes an hour - with SIRO it takes 30 seconds. The wholesale broadband operator’s network is now live in 30 towns across the country, with 10 retailers offering connections to over 185,000 homes and businesses. SIRO is offered on an open-access basis to all telecoms retailers in Ireland.  SIRO has formed partnerships with 10 operators – Vodafone, Digiweb, Sky, BT, Carnsore Broadband, Rocket Broadband, Kerry Broadband, eNet, Airwire and WestNet – with more retailers expected to come on board as the company drives competition in the wholesale broadband market

Clonmel To Be Powered By SIRO’s 100% Fibre Optic Gigabit Broadband Network

SIRO, the wholesale broadband operator building Ireland’s 100% fibre-optic broadband network, will update Tipperary County Council (Borough District of Clonmel) today on the roll-out of its 1 Gigabit (1,000Mbps) broadband network in Clonmel. SIRO’s Gigabit connectivity will allow residents and businesses to avail of broadband that is three times faster than the best service available in Dublin (350 Mbps) and 10 times more powerful than the fastest average internet speed in Ireland. As a result, Clonmel will be on a par with leading cities like Hong Kong and Tokyo in the international broadband leagues. SIRO’s rollout will commence in the Barr an Aird, Ard Aoibhann, Ard na Sidhe, and Longfield areas from the end of May. When construction is completed approximately 10,000 homes and business premises in Clonmel will have access to SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic broadband network. As SIRO is an open access wholesale provider, customers will purchase broadband services from one of SIRO’s retail partners when services go live in late 2018. SIRO’s Fibre-to-the-Building technology is recognised as the gold standard for broadband connectivity internationally and is 100% fibre-optic, with no copper at any point to slow it down. This means that the internet experience of Clonmel will be transformed, catapulting the town into the international leagues for broadband connectivity creating a platform for future economic development in the region. Aoife Ni Lochlainn of SIRO said: “SIRO is delighted to be bringing 100% fibre optic broadband to the people of Clonmel. Businesses will be able to compete online with their international peers, as well as giving residents access to the latest online services in areas like education and remote working. The internet is now at the centre of or lives, whether it’s talking to our loved ones overseas, streaming movies, or selling products to the farthest corners of the globe. Having the same Gigabit connectivity as a city like Tokyo means that Clonmel will experience the latest advances in online education and entertainment, with local Clonmel entrepreneurs and businesses able to bring their ideas to life, trading effortlessly around the world.” SIRO is a joint venture of ESB and Vodafone which is investing €450 million in building Ireland’s first 100% Fibre-to-the-Building broadband network, offering a 1 GB (1,000 Mb) internet connection to 500,000 premises in fifty towns across Ireland. 150,000 Irish homes and businesses now have access to SIRO’s unrivalled broadband. This is to rise to 250,000 by the end of 2018. Using the existing ESB network, SIRO delivers fibre optic cables all the way to the building. This technology, known as Fibre-to-the-Building, has no copper connections at any point to slow down the network and delivers 1 Gigabit speeds. For context, downloading a high definition (HD) film of 4 GB (Gigabytes) with a 10 Mbps connection takes an hour - with SIRO it takes 30 seconds. SIRO is offered on an open-access basis to all telecoms retailers in Ireland. SIRO has formed partnerships with Vodafone, Sky, Carnsore Broadband, Digiweb, Rocket Broadband, Kerry Broadband, Airwire and WestNet, with more retailers expected to come on board as the company drives competition in the wholesale broadband market.

Over 17,000 Kildare homes and businesses to have access to SIRO’s Gigabit Broadband

SIRO, the wholesale broadband operator building a 100% fibre-optic broadband network in 50 towns nationwide, today announced that over 17,000 homes and businesses in Kildare – 8,000 in Newbridge and 9,000 across Naas, Sallins, Kill and Johnstown – are to have access to its 1 Gigabit (1,000Mbps) broadband network. The company outlined its updated plans to roll-out its network across Kildare at a public event today at The Keadeen Hotel, Newbridge, in association with County Kildare Chamber of Commerce. Services are now live in Newbridge, allowing residents and businesses to avail of broadband that is three times faster than the best service available in Dublin (350 Mbps) and 10 times more powerful than the fastest average internet speed in Ireland. Construction is now also underway in Naas, with services expected to go live in areas including Alymer Park, Monread Heights, and Woodlands East by the end of the year, before work commences in Sallins, Kill and Johnstown in 2018. Construction across Kildare is expected to be completed by the end of Summer 2018. Cllr Martin Miley, Mayor of Kildare said: “Fibre broadband is a key component for developing the Smart Economy in Newbridge and this initiative will put Newbridge and shortly to come, Naas, Sallins, Johnstown and Kill, in the same league as Tokyo and Hong Kong for broadband connectivity. This is vital for boosting the local economy, given the necessity of high speed broadband for attracting foreign direct investment. SIRO’s arrival is a welcome development and shows how we are delivering on our Local Area Plans and indeed the County Kildare Development Plan”. Opening the event County Kildare Chamber CEO, Allan Shine said: “We welcome the announcement by SIRO that it will deliver a 100% fibre broadband network to Newbridge, Naas, Sallins, Johnstown and Kill. The existence of leading communications infrastructure is vital to businesses in both these towns, supporting their future growth and development. The Chamber’s vision is to make Kildare the location of choice for existing and potential business enterprise. SIRO’s arrival will ensure that this vision is further cemented and we can continue to seek to attract businesses to invest in these towns. “County Kildare Chamber continues to call for investment in broadband infrastructure. Ireland currently has the second slowest broadband speeds in Europe. This investment will ensure that businesses become more competitive and the need now is to ensure that all towns in Kildare can access high quality broadband.” Stephen O’Connor, Director of Corporate Affairs at SIRO, said: “SIRO’s network which is 100% fibre optic, without the need for copper, will deliver a 1 Gigabit connection directly to these homes and businesses in Newbridge, Naas, Sallins, Johnstown and Kill. This will have a digital transformation on these towns and villages, enabling businesses to compete online with their international peers, as well as giving residents access to the latest online services in areas like education and remote working. Having the same Gigabit connectivity as a city like Tokyo will futureproof Newbridge, Naas, Sallins, Johnstown and Kill’s digital demands for decades to come.” SIRO’s Fibre-to-the-Building technology is recognised as the gold standard for broadband connectivity internationally. This means that the internet experience of Kildare will be transformed, catapulting towns and villages in the county into the international leagues for broadband connectivity creating a platform for future economic development in the region. Using the existing ESB network, SIRO delivers fibre optic cables all the way to the building. This technology, known as Fibre-to-the-Building, has no copper connections at any point to slow down the network and delivers 1 Gigabit speeds. For context, downloading a high definition (HD) film of 4 GB (Gigabytes) with a 10 Mbps connection takes an hour - with SIRO it takes 30 seconds. SIRO is offered on an open-access basis to all telecoms retailers in Ireland. SIRO has formed partnerships with Vodafone, Digiweb, Carnsore Broadband, WestNet, Rocket Broadband, Kerry Broadband, Sky Ireland and Airwire, and with more retailers expected to come on board as the company drives competition in the wholesale broadband market. The SIRO network now covers 120,000 premises, with services now live or under construction in 25 towns across the country including Dundalk, Carrigaline, Sligo, Letterkenny, Tralee, Cavan, Wexford, Skibbereen, Drogheda, Mullingar, Portlaoise, Ennis, Castlebar, Westport, Limerick, Newbridge, Carlow, Swords, Balbriggan, Bray, Greystones, Athlone, Killarney, Shannon and Mallow.

Minister Naughten Reveals That 8,000 Athlone Homes & Businesses To Have Access to SIRO’s Gigabit Broadband Network

Minister for Communications, Climate Action & Environment Denis Naughten TD provided an update today on SIRO’s rollout at an event in the Sheraton Athlone Hotel in association with Athlone Chamber of Commerce. Minister Naughten outlined that 8,000 homes and businesses in Athlone will have access to SIRO’s 1 Gigabit broadband network, as well as revealing Airwire as SIRO’s broadband retail partner. Airwire was established in the start of 2006 with the aim of providing broadband to areas in the West of Ireland which were previously underserved. The Kinvara, Co. Galway based company with offices in Athlone will begin to offer services in the town in Spring 2018, as well as offering broadband powered by SIRO in Ennis, Limerick and Portlaoise, with more towns added to its rollout over the coming months. Customers interested in availing of Airwires’s SIRO powered broadband can log onto Airwire.ie with packages available from €50.00 a month. SIRO’s rollout in Athlone has commenced in the Bushfield/Cornamaddy/Woodville estates (Blackberry Lane, Drunnaconn, The Orchard and Coill Ur) and in the Garrycastle and Monksland areas. When construction is completed by the end of Spring 2018 approximately 8,000 homes and business premises in Athlone will have access to SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic broadband network. As SIRO is an open access wholesale provider, customers will purchase broadband services from one of SIRO’s retail partners such as Airwire, Vodafone or Sky. Minister for Communications, Climate Action & Environment Denis Naughten TD said: “Access to Gigabit connectivity will provide an important boost to Athlone and the surrounding area, who will now be able to take advantage of the same high-speed broadband as leading international hubs such as Tokyo and Hong Kong. It is also fantastic to see Airwire able to take advantage of SIRO’s services and offer broadband packages in the community. Today’s announcement forms part of the Government strategy that I am overseeing to give every premise in Ireland access to high-speed broadband as quickly as possible through a combination of commercial and State-led investment.” Commenting on the announcement, Sean Atkinson, SIRO CEO, said: “We’re delighted to unveil Airwire as our latest retail partner, giving residents and businesses more choice to experience SIRO’s Gigabit connectivity, which is three times as powerful as the market leading service in Dublin and 10 times as powerful as the average service in Ireland. As our eighth retailer, this Airwire partnership is indicative of how SIRO is driving competition in the broadband market, with more partners due to begin offering services over the coming months.” Martin List-Petersen, CTO of Airwire, added: “We have always believed that people living in regional Ireland should have access to broadband of the same quality available to living in cities. Thanks to SIRO, our customers will now be guaranteed the best broadband in the country, delivered at the speed of light, using SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic network. Rather than having to invest millions in building our own fibre network, we now have access to the best technology in the country, which gives us a great opportunity to attract new customers. As SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic broadband network is future proofed, it’s the only broadband service people in Athlone will ever need, a prospect I am very excited about personally as a fellow Athlone resident.” SIRO’s 100% fibre optic network is unprecedented in Ireland. Its Fibre-to-the-Building technology, with no copper at any point to slow it down, is recognised as the gold standard for broadband connectivity internationally. For context, downloading a high definition (HD) film of 4 GB (Gigabytes) with a 10 Mbps connection takes an hour – with SIRO it takes 30 seconds. Using the existing ESB network, SIRO delivers fibre optic cables all the way to the building. This technology, known as Fibre-to-the-Building, has no copper connections at any point to slow down the network and delivers 1 Gigabit speeds. The SIRO network now covers 120,000 premises, with services now live or under construction in 25 towns across the country including Dundalk, Carrigaline, Sligo, Letterkenny, Tralee, Cavan, Wexford, Skibbereen, Drogheda, Mullingar, Portlaoise, Ennis, Castlebar, Westport, Limerick, Newbridge, Carlow, Swords, Balbriggan, Bray, Greystones, Athlone, Killarney, Shannon and Mallow. SIRO is offered on an open-access basis to all telecoms retailers in Ireland, with Airwire, Vodafone, Sky, Digiweb, Carnsore Broadband, Rocket Broadband, WestNet and Kerry Broadband all already offering services, along with partnerships with enet and BT as SIRO drives competition in the wholesale broadband market.

Over A Third of Louth Homes and Businesses Now Have Access To SIRO’s Gigabit Broadband

SIRO, the wholesale broadband operator building a 100% fibre-optic broadband network in 50 towns nationwide, today announced that 22,000 homes and businesses in Louth - 11,000 in Drogheda and 11,000 in Dundalk - now have access to its 1 Gigabit (1,000Mbps) broadband network. Packages are already available from Vodafone and Digiweb as the company’s rollout in the towns continues in response from demand from Dundalk and Drogheda residents. SIRO’s Gigabit connectivity will allow residents and businesses of the two Louth towns to avail of broadband that is three times faster than the best service available in Dublin (350 Mbps) and 10 times more powerful than the fastest average internet speed in Ireland. SIRO’s 100% fibre optic network is unprecedented in Ireland. Its Fibre-to-the-Building technology, with no copper at any point to slow it down, is recognised as the gold standard for broadband connectivity internationally. The company is transforming the internet experience of Drogheda and Dundalk, thrusting them into the same leagues as international hubs like Hong Kong and Tokyo for broadband connectivity, creating a platform for future economic development. For context, downloading a high definition (HD) film of 4 GB (Gigabytes) with a 10 Mbps connection takes an hour – with SIRO it takes 30 seconds. Stephen O’Connor, Director of Corporate Affairs at SIRO, said: “We are very excited by the progress of SIRO’s roll out of 100% fibre-to-the-building broadband network to Dundalk and Drogheda. There is nothing faster than the speed of light, so residents and businesses will be guaranteed the best broadband experience in the country thanks to SIRO’s 100% fibre optic network. Dundalk was the first town in the country connected to the SIRO network and the demand has been phenomenal to date.” “The Mill in Drogheda became the second regional hub to be powered by SIRO’s 100% fibre-optic network in February and has already established itself as a vibrant start-up centre for the area. We are delighted to help play a role in its success by giving companies in residence at the Mill access to the most powerful broadband available in Ireland, enabling them to have the same competitive advantage in terms of connectivity as their international peers.” “The Mill was quickly followed by Dundalk Institute of Technology’s Regional Development Centre, the first on-campus higher education incubation centre to receive two years of free gigabit fibre broadband from SIRO and Vodafone as part of the companies’ national Gigabit Hub Initiative. This future-proofed network is a game-changer, transforming broadband in Drogheda and Dundalk now and for decades into the future.” Using the existing ESB network, SIRO delivers fibre optic cables all the way to the building. This technology, known as Fibre-to-the-Building, has no copper connections at any point to slow down the network and delivers 1 Gigabit speeds. The SIRO network now covers 110,000 premises, with services now live or under construction in 25 towns across the country including Dundalk, Carrigaline, Sligo, Letterkenny, Tralee, Cavan, Wexford, Skibbereen, Drogheda, Mullingar, Portlaoise, Ennis, Castlebar, Westport, Limerick, Newbridge, Carlow, Swords, Balbriggan, Bray, Greystones, Athlone, Killarney, Shannon and Mallow. SIRO is offered on an open-access basis to all telecoms retailers in Ireland. SIRO has formed partnerships with Vodafone, Carnsore Broadband, Digiweb, Rocket Broadband, Kerry Broadband and WestNet, with more retailers expected to come on board as the company drives competition in the wholesale broadband market. A video of Colm Hanratty of Six-Two Digital, located at The Mill in Drogheda, the second hub to receive two years of free gigabit fibre broadband from SIRO and Vodafone as part of the companies’ national Gigabit Hub Initiative can be viewed here. Since joining The Mill and using its SIRO connectivity, Colm has won new business across Ireland while being able to enjoy the quality of life in his hometown of Drogheda.

SIRO, the open-access wholesale broadband provider delivering Ireland’s first 100% fibre-optic broadband network to 50 towns nationwide, celebrated “Gimme Fibre” day (the international milestone organised by the FTTH Council to celebrate FTTH technology) by breaking ground in Monksland, Co. Roscommon, which is one of the first 25 SIRO towns. Gigabit broadband powered by SIRO is now available to over 110,000 homes and businesses in 25 towns across the country with over 12,000 customers now connected to the network via 6 retail partners. Given the substantial rollout of Fibre-to-the-Home broadband in Ireland in the past two years, Minister for Communications Denis Naughten TD and SIRO have also both jointly requested the FTTH council to include Ireland in its next league Table (Market Panorama) which will be published in February. SIRO is the only Irish operator member of the influential FTTH Council which is an industry organisation whose mission is to accelerate the availability of ultra-high-speed fibre access networks for the benefit of consumers and businesses. The council advocates how fibre communications positively impacts communities and competitiveness and facilitates European policy goals such as the Digital Agenda and the Digital Single Market. Welcoming the progress of the rollout of FTTH broadband in Ireland, Minister Naughten said: “The CEO of the FTTH council, Ms Erzsebet Fitori, was the keynote speaker at the recent ComReg conference which clearly shows how the conversation in Ireland is changing from last mile copper and cable to fibre. I will be writing to the Council in support of SIRO’s submission. League tables matter and with the latest ComReg statistics showing total FTTH subscriptions at 20,000, we should now join the register.” Sean Atkinson, SIRO CEO, added: “In the two years since we launched we have changed the conversation about broadband in Ireland with a clear recognition that FTTH is the future. SIRO is having an impact with initiatives like the Ludgate Hub illustrating how Gigabit connectivity can spark a digital transformation in towns like Skibbereen. SIRO is proud to be the only Irish operator member of the FTTH Council and with over 12,000 customers ourselves alone, we have requested that Ireland be included in the next FTTH league table due in February 2018.” Using the existing ESB network, SIRO services are delivered through fibre-optic cables which run alongside existing electricity connections, all the way to the building. This technology has no copper connections at any point to slow down the network and delivers 1 Gigabit download and upload speeds.  When downloading a high definition film of 4 gigabytes with a 10 Mbps connection, the average download time is an hour or more - with SIRO it takes less than 30 seconds. The first phase of SIRO’s FTTH rollout is currently ongoing with services due to be made available to 500,000 homes and businesses in 50 regional towns.  Services powered by SIRO are already live or under construction in 25 towns across the country – Dundalk, Carrigaline, Sligo, Letterkenny, Tralee, Cavan, Wexford, Skibbereen, Drogheda, Mullingar, Portlaoise, Ennis, Castlebar, Westport, Limerick, Newbridge, Carlow, Swords, Balbriggan, Bray, Greystones, Athlone, Killarney, Shannon and Mallow. As an open access wholesale provider, SIRO is also driving competition in the broadband market with six retailers – Vodafone, Digiweb, Westnet, Rocket Broadband, Carnsore Broadband and Kerry Broadband – signed up thus far and discussions advanced with other providers.

What does Carlow Town have to say about broadband?

We asked the people of Carlow what high-speed fibre optic broadband would mean to them, for their lives and businesses and this is what they had to say: [embed]https://youtu.be/QtvFeHKM-KA[/embed]