New Broadband Technology Improves Speeds

BT offers ISPs broadband-multiplying software.

As Britain debates the future of broadband, especially moving to a fiber optic network, British Telecom (BT) is starting to sell broadband-multiplying software toInternet service providers, according to ZDNet.co.uk.   Developed by Sharedband, the Sharedband aggregation suiteallows a pair of broadband connections (or more) to be put together to create upload and download speeds that are up to four times faster. Under a new deal, BT will offer the suite of software toISPs for use with their customers.   "Using Sharedband means that two 2Mbps lines will perform as one connection of up to 4Mbps, four 2Mbps lines will deliver up to 8Mbps and so on,"Paul Evans, Sharedband’s chief executive, told ZDNet.co.uk on Thursday. "Crucially, the upload speeds will also be transformed. Working with BT will provide us with tremendous market awarenessand scalability to meet the expected demand fuelled by new online applications, especially where upstream bandwidth is needed."   Sharedband claims the technology adds a layer of resilienceto broadband connections, too, since the loss of one would still leave the other functioning – something that would be a boon to any customers who’ve experienced outages.   Althoughfiber optics will likely be the long-term future, this offers a very viable stop-gap, with increased speeds at a fraction of the cost, and as companies compete and users demand a faster connection,things look good for Sharedband.