25 East Manchester businesses have signed up to broadband services from ITS Technology Group on its CityServe network using Broadband Delivery UK funding, a government voucher scheme designed to get 95 per cent of the UK connected to superfast broadband by 2017. The CityServe network was originally set up for local social housing tenants.
ITS acquired the ailing CityServe infrastructure in June 2014, and has since breathed new life into it by implementing a series of upgrades. This not only means that the existing customer base of housing tenants is now benefiting from a faster, more reliable service, but it has also opened up the network to local businesses struggling with connectivity that wasn’t fit for purpose, with no alternative other than an expensive dedicated line.
Roy Shelton, CEO, ITS Technology Group, said, “When we bought CityServe, our number one priority was to upgrade the network so that existing customers had the peace of mind of a cost effective, fast and reliable service. It was always our intention to expand the offering to local businesses, and as an IT services specialist, we can now offer them telephony, IT managed services and CCTV.”
CityServe’s wireless broadband covers a 25 square-kilometre area which includes 48,000 homes. It was developed by Manchester City Council from a government-led ‘wired up communities’ initiative in 2001 and has established itself as one of the largest wireless networks of its kind in Europe.
