Sky Ireland has outlined plans for a notable investment in broadband, with the Irish Times saying the company intends to spend ‘several hundred million euro’ in rolling out a new 1Gbps-capable product over the next five years. According to the report, Sky Ireland’s new ‘aggregate product’ will utilise existing fibre technologies and networks from other suppliers, bundling them into a single package for the consumer; the operator changed its broadband business model in 2016, switching from having a single wholesale supplier to being able to aggregate and sell any product that was on the market. It is understood that Sky Ireland hopes to reach more than a million premises with the product over the next three to five years, while it will use the Government’s National Broadband Plan to reach under-served rural communities.
Commenting on the matter, Sky Ireland’s chief financial officer Neal O’Rourke was cited as saying: ‘What we’re launching allows us to tap into whatever the best broadband speed is in any area … For us, it’s that ability to aggregate and give customers the best product based on where they are, be it rural, urban or somewhere in between.’ Sky Ireland’s director of products and marketing, Ann-Marie MacKay, added: ‘Our reach will continue to grow year on year through our relationship with partners such as SIRO and through backing the Government’s National Broadband Plan, which will make superfast broadband a reality for currently under-served communities.’