Plusnet is taking part in a trial that may ultimately allow a million more homes and businesses throughout the UK to get broadband ADSL. Up to one thousand volunteers in the Milton Keynes area are now being sought, to see if they can successfully receive ADSL service during the large-scale testing, set to begin on June 1st.

The trial, to be carried out by BT throughout this summer, will help establish ways in which the range of ADSL services might be extended, to cover up to 99% of all those connected to broadband enabled exchanges. By extending the reach, BT hopes to address the frustrating situation in which many find themselves, of not being able to get ADSL when their neighbours can.

Marco Potesta, Marketing Director of Plusnet said, "We are very pleased to be taking part in the extended reach ADSL trial and expect to see a tremendous amount of interest in it; both from people living in the Milton Keynes area, and from outside observers. A substantial number of our customers desperately want to subscribe to broadband ADSL, but find themselves in the unhappy position of having failed their preliminary compatibility test, due to line quality or distance. We hope that this trial will prove to be BT's first step leading to more inclusive coverage of service throughout the UK."

Milton Keynes has been chosen for the trial since approximately 18% of people are out of reach of ADSL service despite all of the exchanges in the area being broadband enabled. The service coverage issues facing the new town have been highlighted particularly through the coordinating activities of Milton Keynes Broadband Action Group.

The extended reach trial will attempt to provide high-speed 512k ADSL service on lines up to 10km distance from the enabled exchange. Currently the maximum distance over which ADSL service may be reliably provided is 6km. Not all connections are expected to work during the trial, however BT will carry out extensive line testing at each location. BT Wholesale plans to use the information provided to launch longer-distance broadband products later this year.

Marco Potesta continued, "BT Wholesale's plans to release extended reach broadband ADSL products are to be commended. This will go some further way to bringing broadband service to the majority of the UK."

People in the Milton Keynes area (dial code 01908) who are interested in taking part in the extended reach trials can register their interest in 'extended reach' broadband through Plusnet by emailing extendedreach@plus.net with name, daytime contact details and the telephone number of the line onto which the broadband service would be activated. The number of participants is limited and those registering their interest will be notified as to whether they have been successful.

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