BT 21CN And The New Standard In Business Broadband

At the moment, the technology used in most BT telephone exchanges limits download speeds to about 8 Mbps. We can get around this using Local Loop Unbundling or LLU methods and get that maximum up to more than 20 Mbps for our customer’s ADSL2+ connections, but BT is in the process of updating its exchanges and telephone systems to deal with the increased demands of fast home and business broadband internet.

The new 21CN (21st Century) network will use ADSL2+ technology as standard inside each local exchange. That will mean a limit of 24 Mbps rather than 8 Mbps. That’s not as speedy as the maximum available through fibre optic networks, which is about 40 Mbps and incredibly fast by today’s standards, but it is still outstanding. The 21CN service to users is called Wholesale Broadband Connect.

For business broadband, the roll out of the 21CN network also means new software packages that offer more control over what comes and goes through your internet connection. The ability to prioritise certain processes will be greatly improved, for example. The new technology is being built with interoperability between different networks and technologies in mind- fixed lines, mobile phones, and laptops using mobile internet access dongles. It’s likely to bring significant benefits to roving internet users as well as home and business broadband users on fixed connections.

If you’re interested in finding out if the new 21CN system will affect your business broadband options, have a look at the free broadband access checking tool on our main page.