The government’s Superconnected Cities Scheme is designed to incentivise Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to upgrade to high speed connectivity. The scheme provides individual businesses with £3,000 to offset the associated installation of infrastructure. The scheme runs for a year only and represents a great opportunity for resellers. “This is a great government scheme that resellers need to be aware of. Venus is already one of the registered providers for the scheme and we would encourage other retailers to join. There are great opportunities for resellers to increase volume with good margins with infrastructure cost barriers being removed by the scheme,” reflects Brian.
The scheme invites businesses to get quotes from suppliers registered with the scheme. The business then applies to their local authority under the scheme for a connection voucher. Once the work is complete the voucher is redeemed for £3,000. The Superconnected Cities scheme facilitates installation of either Next Generation Access (NGA) technology or a Business Grade Connection delivering speeds of over 24 Mbps.
“We have designed a fibre leased line package specifically for resellers registered with the Superconnected Cities scheme that offers very competitive prices. The package helps resellers to get the most out of the high anticipated volumes the scheme is likely to create across the UK. As a network operator we can support resellers registered on the scheme allowing them to deliver a high speed uncontended connection that will deliver a symmetrical service. Importantly we understand the scheme and can provide the supporting information they need to expedite their client’s award and redemption of the voucher,” says Brian.
The scheme is being launched this month and the Government predicts that this will stimulate many SMEs to install the best connectivity infrastructure they can. As businesses seek to future proof their IT to deliver high speed connection, resellers and the supporting network operators need to be ready to deliver the anticipated high demand across the UK.