Irish firm signs €20m deal to provide broadband services across Europe

AN IRISH company has signed a €20 million 15-year contract with one of the world’s largest satellite operators to help provide a high-speed broadband service across Europe.

National Space Centre Ltd, which is based at Elfordstown, near Midleton, Co Cork, began beaming the Tooway service at midnight last night.

It offers homes and businesses an always-on broadband service at speeds of up to 10Mb downstream and four Mb upstream. But because it is beamed from a satellite it will be available to millions of remote European homes which are unable to receive phone-line based ADSL broadband.