Faster internet will soon be available to thousands of people in two Norfolk towns.
More than 13,000 properties in Dereham and Thetford will soon be able to connect to a full-fibre network provided by LightSpeed Broadband.
The gigabit technology is 25 times faster than the average speed currently available in the East of England, which stands at just under 40 Mbps (megabytes per second) according to independent broadband checker, thinkbroadband.
LightSpeed's network is already live in King's Lynn, Downham Market, Fakenham and Hunstanton, in addition to 11 other towns in the East.
Bosses from LightSpeed Broadband with county councillor Tom Fitzpatrick (second from right) in Fakenham (Image: LightSpeed Broadband)
The Lincolnshire firm will also add Cromer and Sheringham to the network over the coming months.
Chris Holkham, delivery director at LightSpeed Broadband, said: "We are thrilled that customers in Dereham and Thetford can now connect to our full-fibre network and experience broadband happiness with our gigabit internet.
"As a regionally-based internet service provider, we believe in providing a fantastic service at a fair price and we are very proud of how our service has been received so far.
"We are excited about the opportunities this digital connectivity will bring to residents, businesses and the wider economy across the East of England.
"Residents are encouraged to register to be the first to hear when their home or business can access the network.”
LightSpeed's rollout began in south Lincolnshire and west Norfolk last April, and is now expanding throughout Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex.
Its technology is said to offer symmetrical upload and download speeds of 1 gigabit per second (1,000 Mbps), making activities like working from home, video calling, online gaming and streaming video much easier.
Based in Spalding, the company is backed by investment from British and American businesspeople from organisations including AtmosClear Investments, Kompass Kapital, Sequoia and Thesaurium.
LightSpeed has ambitions to reach one million premises by the year 2025.
Residents and businesses can use the postcode checker at www.lightspeed.co.uk to see whether they have access to the network.
Users can either sign up or register for updates on when the service goes live.
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