Ultrafast broadband now available to thousands of homes in Accrington

• Full fibre to the premises (FTTP) technology with average top speeds of 516Mbps
• Virgin Media’s broadband speeds are nine times faster than the local average
• 4K movies and computer games downloaded in minutes
• Virgin Media’s engineers have worked throughout the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure that customers have access to vital connectivity when they need it most

As part of its ‘Project Lightning’ network expansion programme, Virgin Media is expanding its ultrafast broadband network across the UK, bringing average top speeds of 516Mbps to residents and small businesses.

Accrington is the latest town to benefit from Virgin Media’s investment, with the firm also rolling out next-generation gigabit broadband to its entire network of 15 million homes by the end of 2021.

Virgin Media has recently introduced a suite of measures to help extend WiFi reach and speeds throughout the home, meaning Accrington residents can now benefit from the operator’s best ever WiFi coverage and speeds.

Virgin Media has continued to expand its network during the global COVID-19 pandemic to bring ultrafast connectivity to more homes and businesses across the UK when they need it most.

Ultrafast broadband boost for Accrington residents – now nine times faster than the local average

Virgin Media’s ultrafast broadband speeds are 9 times faster than the local average*. Accrington residents will benefit from fibre to the premises (FTTP) technology which allows for smooth, reliable connectivity in the home. With a 516Mbps connection, large files, films and games become very quick to stream, download and upload:

• Download in HD the entire 4^th season of The Crown (10GB) in less than three minutes, compared to more than 26 minutes on the average local connection;
• Download Call of Duty Cold War (133GB) on PS5 in just over 37 minutes, compared to over 5 hours and 47 minutes on the average local connection**

 Paul Hutchinson, Regional Director for the North West at Virgin Media, said:

“Ultrafast broadband has never been more essential to our daily lives and we’re committed to making our services available to more people in this time of need.

“With average speeds of 516Mbps now available to more than 6,800 homes, thousands of residents in Accrington can now benefit from our unbeatable services with speeds nine times faster than local average and enough bandwidth to support the whole family at the same time.”

Virgin Media’s Oomph bundles

By combining broadband, TV, home phone and mobile into one bundle, Virgin Media’s Oomph packages offer outstanding value for customers.

With the Ultimate Oomph bundle, customers can enjoy the ultimate entertainment and connectivity experience at home or on the move.

This includes broadband with average top speeds of 516Mbps – with a speed boost to 600Mbps in the near future – as well as a mobile SIM with truly unlimited data, texts and calls.

Customers can also access Virgin Media’s new TV service, Virgin TV 360. The advanced TV line-up includes a new Mini box, new TV remote with voice control and smart new features which offer a fully integrated, voice activated and personalised service.

Offering the very best entertainment, Virgin TV 360 boasts all of the top TV channels and streaming apps such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and BBC iPlayer, all with 4k Ultra-High Definition and HDR viewing capabilities.

Ultimate Oomph also comes complete with more than 280 channels including Sky Sports, Sky Cinema and BT Sport in 4K Ultra HD, as well as inclusive anytime landline calls.

And with Virgin Media’s ultrafast broadband, multiple users in the home can stream and watch their favourite shows and content all at the same time in the highest resolution.

For those interested in Virgin Media’s fantastic services, they can go online now to check out our latest deals http://www.virginmedia.com/

Notes to Editors

More information about how Virgin Media people are helping the country stay connected can be found HERE.

*The average (median) broadband speed in Hyndburn is 54.8Mbps. Source: Source: Ofcom, Connected Nations Report 2020, published 17 December 2020.

** Download speeds calculated using www.download-time.com

About Virgin Media

Virgin Media offers four multi award-winning services across the UK: broadband, TV, mobile phone and landline.

Our network delivers the fastest widely-available broadband speeds to homes and businesses. We’re expanding this through continued investment in our Project Lightning programme, which has seen our network footprint reach an additional 2.3 million premises so far to pass 15.1 million UK premises overall. We are also investing to bring next-generation gigabit speeds to our entire broadband network by the end of 2021, with progress so far making us the UK’s largest gigabit network.

Our interactive TV service brings live TV, thousands of hours of on-demand programming and the best apps and games to customers through a set-top box, as well as on-the-go through tablets and smartphones.

Virgin Mobile launched the world’s first virtual mobile network and offers fantastic value and innovative services with 4G connectivity. We are also one of the largest fixed-line home phone providers in the UK.

Through Virgin Media Business we support entrepreneurs, businesses and the public sector, delivering a range of connectivity and tailor-made services.

Virgin Media employs around 12,000 people directly in the UK and is part of Liberty Global, one of the world’s leading converged video, broadband and communications companies. Liberty Global connects 11 million customers through operations in six countries across Europe subscribing to 25 million TV, broadband internet and telephony services. It also serves 6 million mobile subscribers.