Every home and farm would benefit, he told community leaders, business people and other politicians at the launch.

Cabinet Ministers met from early this morning to sign off on the National Broadband Plan contract.

The details of 300 broadband hubs are to be announced when the Government finally signs off on the National Broadband Plan today.

The Government is set to sign off on the €3bn National Broadband Plan contract at its weekly meeting tomorrow.

The European Commission has officially approved Ireland’s controversial National Broadband Plan (NBP) under EU state aid rules, at a value of €2.6 billion.

The commission announced that in its opinion the potential benefits to competition in the Irish broadband sector outweigh the negatives represented by the intervention of the State.

The President of Microsoft Brad Smith was critical of broadband availability in Ireland while speaking at a conference last week.

Fianna Fáil has called on the Minister for Communications to explain why Northern Ireland's broadband scheme could cost half the price of the National Broadband plan in the south.

Virgin Media, which is starting work on bringing broadband to nearly 3,500 homes and businesses in Midleton, has ruled out extending the service to other parts of east Cork.

Northern Ireland's "thriving" tech sector can bid for innovative rural 5G technology opportunities, the British Government has said.

Fianna Fáil has ruled out pulling support from the Government over their opposition to the current €5bn rural broadband plan.

Thousands of people with one-off houses and new homes

The Government’s multi-billion euro broadband plan is at risk of being derailed after an Oireachtas committee called for a three-month freeze of the project to force a re-examination of its €3bn cost and the entire tendering process.

The Government is refusing to say if it will accept calls to reform its multi-billion euro broadband plan which could force the project to stay in public ownership and subject it to another in-depth review.

A review carried out by the Communications Committee concluded the existing plan is based on a flawed tendering process and ignored viable alternative options.

From today, Eir will give users what it calls "effectively uncapped data usage" for prepay, bill and small business plans.

A cross-party report on whether to support or reject the Government's controversial broadband plans will not be published until August 20 because of differing views on its findings.

Concerns about the long-term ownership of the rural broadband network and the length of time to complete the planned €5bn project are among findings in revealed in an Oireachtas committee report.

The Department of Communications has said the proposal by Eir to roll out the National Broadband Plan for less than a €1bn is not feasible.

The Regional Internet Service Providers Association (RISPA) claims it could deliver an alternative to the National Broadband Plan for just over €400m.

Accepting Eir’s offer to deliver the National Broadband Plan at a cut price would be illegal, top officials in the Department of Communications have claimed.

The National Broadband Plan's tendering process was not fit for purpose, according to Fianna Fáil.

Communications Minister Richard Bruton has yet to make a decision on Eir's new broadband proposal.

Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment Richard Bruton has said there is no going back “to tear up the terms and conditions” of the tendering process for the National Broadband contract that were set in December 2015.

The National Broadband Plan has been thrown into fresh confusion after Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the Government will consider Eir’s claim it could deliver it for less than €1bn.

The Taoiseach has indicated that the Government could restart the National Broadband Plan (NBP) tender process after Eir claimed they could deliver the high speed network for one third of the current price.

Yesterday’s statement to the Oireachtas communications committee from Eir chief executive Carolan Lennon that her company could complete the National Broadband Plan for less than €1bn, a third of the figure the State has agreed to

Former Minister for Communications Denis Naughten has expressed surprise at claims by Eir that it could complete the National Broadband Plan for less than €1bn.

The former state telephone company, Eir, will today claim it could have delivered the Government's National Broadband Plan (NBP) for under €1bn, one-third of its estimated final cost.

Low Earth orbit satellites have the potential to provide broadband at gigabit speed globally, and they could also play a role in Ireland’s National Broadband Plan.

Fianna Fáil has expressed concern that the cost for the National Broadband Plan has been underestimated.

The communications regulator says introducing 5G for internet access would not meet the needs of everyone living in rural Ireland.

The consortium developing the State’s multibillion-euro national broadband project has been accused of “bringing nothing” to the plan amid claims a separate company is part-funding its investment.

Former Communications Minister Alex White has said he is “mystified” by the €3bn cost of providing the National Broadband Plan.

The Department of Public Expenditure’s top civil servant has refused to come before an Oireachtas committee investigation into broadband today.

The Department of Public Expenditure’s top civil servant looks likely to snub an Oireachtas broadband investigation until after the local elections.

The Department of Public Expenditure's top civil servant has yet to say whether he will appear before Wednesday's Oireachtas committee's broadband investigation.

A cross-party investigation into the €5bn national broadband plan will also look at the best way to roll out a high-speed network to rural Ireland.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said he supports an Oireachtas investigation into the national broadband plan, amid opposition warnings that billions of euro more must be found to fund the project.

The government has nothing to hide in relation to the €3bn National Broadband Plan and will explain its decision and the project costs in due course, the Tánaiste says.

Opposition calls to take Eircom back into state ownership to run the National Broadband Plan could cost up to €9bn, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.

Cross-party support for an Oireachtas committee investigation into the €5bn national broadband plan is likely to be agreed as the Government urges opposition parties to back the plan.

Opposition calls to renationalise the former state telephone company, Eir, and have it run the National Broadband Plan would cost up to €9 billion, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.

Fianna Fáil has claimed the consortium behind the Government's broadband project may be planning to hit households with new charges to fill its own funding gap, before selling the contract onto another firm who will hike prices even further.