On Monday the 29th of February, Wightfibre CEO John Irvine was joined by Jonathan Thornton of PC Consultants and James Attrill of BCM to debate the issues surrounding rural broadband with front-line perspective as the main topic. This debate is now more important than ever, following a recent report stating that BT Openreach haven’t delivered the services that they had previously promised to rural businesses.
The live TV debate featured issues that were previously mentioned at the Rural Business Forum held at Tapnell Farm in Janauary. James Attrill states that rural businesses are becoming increasingly dependent on their broadband, whether it’s to promote their businesses, pay their staff or use payment methods that require reliable connections such as PDQ machines.
That’s Solent TV presenter, Charlotte Briere-Edney suggested to Jonathan Thornton that poor connections could force businesses to relocate to premises that can deliver adequate broadband. Jonathan replied in agreement, saying “There are business parks and other areas that could really benefit from having fast connectivity, so having fast Internet is very important.’
You can watch the whole debate below and discover more key issues that are affecting not only Isle of Wight businesses, but residents and the Island’s tourism sector.
Your opinion matters!
- Poor Internet connection is affecting rural communities and rural businesses, do you agree?
- Has the BT OpenReach Rural Broadband project improved services to the Island’s rural communities?
Get in touch with us on Facebook or Twitter to share your opinions, problems and hopes for rural broadband. You can also follow #IWRuralForum to stay up to date with news.
