askvity

What does part fibre mean?

Published in Internet Technology 2 mins read

Part fibre broadband, also known as Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC), refers to an internet connection that uses fibre optic cables to the local street cabinet but then relies on traditional copper wires (or cable lines) to connect the cabinet to your home or business.

In more detail:

  • Fibre Optic Cable to the Cabinet: The core infrastructure uses high-speed fibre optic cables from the internet service provider's (ISP's) main network to a cabinet located on your street or in your neighborhood. Fibre optic offers significantly faster and more reliable data transmission than copper.

  • Copper or Cable Connection to Your Home: From the street cabinet to your premises, the connection uses existing copper telephone lines (in the case of FTTC) or coaxial cable (common with cable internet). This "last mile" connection is the bottleneck, as copper and cable have limited bandwidth compared to fibre.

Essentially, part fibre is a hybrid technology designed to improve internet speeds by leveraging fibre optic infrastructure for the majority of the distance, while utilizing existing copper or cable networks for the final connection to the end user. While not as fast as full fibre (Fibre to the Premises or FTTP), it's typically significantly faster than traditional copper-based ADSL broadband.

Related Articles