AN internet service provider held an event to mark the official start of its first full fibre network building programme in Henley. Zzoomm is offering download speeds up to 200 times faster than the current UK average. The Oxford company will have 26 employees based at its new regional office at The Hub in Station Road. On Monday, the company’s chief executive and founder Matthew Hare was joined by Henley Mayor Ken Arlett to cut a ribbon at the office. Zzoomm actually began work on its network last month and is set to complete the project in a year. It hopes to have its first customers connected to the network before the end of this year. The company says it can offer faster speeds because customers’ premises will be linked to the wider network by fibre-optic cables, which transmit data through plastic strands using rapid pulses of light. About 6,850 households and businesses will be able to sign up once all the streets have been connected. The company will offer speeds from 100Mbps to 10,000Mbps for professional users compared with the national average of about 47Mbps. Mr Hare said: “This is about future-proofing Henley as a town by giving you the infrastructure. “Henley is going to be at the forefront with a modern fibre network connecting the whole community. “Copper cables were great for voice when we were just doing phone calls 20 years ago. The problem is they don’t work very well for data, for putting communications over. This network is designed to give the most fabulous data speeds you want. Our experience is people do want much better broadband and are happy to pay for it. We’re doing this because we expect to make money but it’s a very long-term investment. There is a seven-year payback for us.” Councillor Arlett said: “Henley is the jewel in the crown of South Oxfordshire so I well understand why you have chosen Henley to come to first.” Most of South Oxfordshire’s existing network uses fibre after being upgraded under Better Broadband for Oxfordshire, a joint scheme funded by the Government, Openreach and Oxfordshire County Council. However, individual properties are still hooked up by copper cables, which are slower and perform worse in wet weather.
Start - up Orange has said it can supply customers with download speeds that are 200 times faster than those currently available . The company , which started work on its broadband fibre network west of London last year , expects to connect its first users at the end of this year and plans to finish building the network within 12 months .