Broadband contract attracts two bidders

Just two companies have been picked to compete for government funds allocated to rolling out broadband to far-flung parts of the UK, under a national framework agreement aimed at cutting costs for local authorities.

The emergence of only two parties is likely to raise further questions about how competitive the selection process has been, given there is no guarantee both will bid for every tender. BT and Fujitsu have been chosen by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which operates the £530m broadband delivery UK program. This aims to provide superfast broadband to 90 per cent of every county by 2015 and ensure a minimum 2 Mbps elsewhere. The national framework agreement, under which councils can choose from a list of already approved providers, so avoiding some of the costs associated with the tendering process, is aimed at accelerating the speed of rural broadband provision. That spread is seen as a key economic and social need.