The trial marks a significant leap for the UK’s fibre market, demonstrating how early adoption of next-generation passive optical network (PON) technology can meet real-time business demand for high-speed, scalable, and sustainable connectivity.

ITS’s network and operations teams worked closely with product and commercial colleagues and strategic partners to understand how 50G-PON can address emerging needs across the market.

Initial results highlight 50G-PON’s potential to significantly increase fibre performance while reducing cost and environmental impact compared to traditional point-to-point builds.

“While the industry roadmap points to 2026 or 2027 for commercial rollout, our view is simple: business customers are ready now. It is one of ITS’s strategic objectives to stay at the forefront of pioneering technology such as this,” said Mike Goodwin, Chief Technology Officer.

“We know from the recent ISPA conference, the conversation was about who survives and thrives. It comes down to great products, great service, and great value. 50G-PON ticks all those boxes – and more.”

During the trial the ITS team observed 50G-PON speeds of 41.8Gbps Downstream and 19.2 Gbps upstream. This was while using combi-optics to deliver GPON and XGS-PON services, allowing ITS to deliver 50G-PON leased line services over existing networks without disruption to service.

The trial comes just weeks after the latest Broadband Forum ‘Plugfest’, where 50G-PON and 25GS-PON technologies were tested for interoperability at a global level for the first time. ITS is building on that momentum by collaborating with vendors and standards bodies to accelerate real-world deployment across the UK.

The market demand for business grade symmetrical 10Gbps services is already well established in ITS’s base. Traditionally served via point-to-point fibre, 50G-PON now offers a more sustainable and efficient way to deploy high-capacity services using existing fibre infrastructure.

Key use cases include:

• 5G Deployment: With the increasing need for dense 5G coverage, 50G-PON can deliver the high-throughput fibre connectivity required to support small cell deployment – especially in mobile not-spot areas where localised fibre access can close the gap.
• Large multi-occupancy units and mixed-use developments: As vertical high streets and large-scale residential or mixed-use buildings become more common, 50G-PON supports their need for always-on, high-speed access – futureproofing digital cities with capacity for localised, high-bandwidth demand.
• 10Gb+ Business Services: Business customers requiring 10Gbps symmetrical and above can now be served more cost-effectively, with less fibre strain and faster deployment.
• Environmental Sustainability: 50G-PON coexists with XGS-PON and GPON on the same network, significantly boosting bandwidth without additional civil works. This enables UK fibre infrastructure to evolve without repeated, disruptive build cycles.

Mike continued: “Access networks are no longer built the way they used to be. Whether it’s local authorities planning infrastructure, developers designing for digital, or mobile operators needing backhaul for 5G, the network must scale with demand. Third-generation PON like this is how we deliver that.” The trial with Nelson-based Limitless Digital Group is the first of several planned tests across the UK. ITS is building a bank of scalable, real-world use cases to support the roll-out of 50G-PON and shape how next-gen networks are adopted by enterprise, public sector, infrastructure partners, and smart city developers.

FibreLight provides guaranteed ‘always on’ access to 20% of the ordered speed, even during peak times, with the remainder accessible as symmetrical burstable bandwidth designed to meet the performance needs and service reliability of digitally-reliant organisations.

FibreLight fills the gap between traditional leased line and broadband service offerings. It provides enhanced service capabilities compared to an FTTP broadband service, at a more competitive price point than leased line services.

By leveraging ITS’s XGS-PON-capable network, it ensures seamless support for FibreLight customers transitioning to a FibreBright leased line service. This inherent flexibility allows connectivity to scale with the growth of business operations and the adoption of data-intensive applications.

Pete England, Product Director at ITS, said: “As we continue to invest heavily in the development of our business connectivity product portfolio, I am delighted that this now includes groundbreaking 2.5 and 5Gbps FTTP services.

“FibreLight has broken the mould. Instead of opting for an unspecified ‘minimum speed guarantee,’ our partners can rely on our Committed Information Rate (CIR) of 20%. This ensures their customers receive guaranteed service levels, combined with burstable bandwidth to maintain optimal performance and prevent slowdowns or interruptions.

“Our partners and their customers demand more than promises; they need assured performance. FibreLight provides exactly that, giving businesses the connectivity they need to thrive in an ever-evolving digital economy.”

FibreLight includes a fixed IPv4 address, with options to upgrade to enhanced business care packages and value add services such as backup, voice, additional fixed IPv4 addresses, and dedicated project management services for complex or multi-site projects. All ITS’s connectivity solutions can be accessed through its self-service partner portal. For more information visit /partner-with-us/products-portfolio/

Broadening its business connectivity offer, ITS has reintroduced an overhauled FibreOne service. Developed as the full fibre wholesaler’s most cost-effective entry-level business-grade asymmetrical solution, it is available with download speeds of up to 1Gbps. Launched in two phases, FibreOne will initially be available in 22 towns and cities across the country. A further 24 locations are expected to go live later this year.

ITS has also refreshed its FibreLight FTTP product set which now offers a fully symmetrical XGS-PON Ethernet over FTTP service designed with guaranteed ‘always on’ access to 20% of the ordered speed. The remaining bandwidth is burstable providing the performance demanded by digitally reliant businesses. FibreLight can be upgraded through enhanced service level agreements.

Pete England, ITS’ Head of Product Development said: “Working with our partners, in FibreOne we have developed a product set that helps them to provide the right connectivity services for their customers’ needs. The redevelopment of this entry-level service has filled a void for our partners who were asking for a business-grade solution that will help them to migrate customers from copper-based services including ADSL and Fibre To The Cabinet (FTTC).

“Our product portfolio has been designed to grow with end-user demands, which includes upfront customisable options and future scalability. While FibreOne increases ITS’ geographic reach to allow more businesses to get on to the full fibre ladder, it complements the existing reach of our FibreLight product – which with many of the attributes of a leased line is really helping our partners to differentiate in a noisy marketplace. For those looking for a truly managed service, it is seamless for our partners to upgrade their customers from FibreLight to a dedicated FibreBright leased line in life.”

All of ITS’ FTTP portfolio are offered with a fixed IPv4 address with upgrade options of enhanced business care level, additional fixed IPv4 addresses, and dedicated project management services for complex or multi-site projects. ITS’ connectivity and value-added services are accessed through its self-service Partner Portal. As part of this launch, ITS has updated its service and availability checker, splitting out the business broadband (FTTP) and leased line options to allow more focused searches.

For more information, click here.

ITS has built a channel programme that has attracted more than 500 partners including resellers, managed service providers (MSP), and internet service providers (ISP). Through our automated self service portal, partners can now access our suite of business-grade gigabit capable connectivity solutions – from full fibre broadband to dedicated leased lines – with the option to add on enhanced service wraps designed through partner feedback to boost their wider solution procurement.

With a roadmap to launch further value-add services later this year, we’ve initially introduced voice-enabled connectivity options, additional fixed IP addresses, and a series of resilience services including 4G backup and broadband backup. There is also access to dedicated project management services for complex or multi-site projects.

Pete England, Head of Product Development at ITS said: “A key point of difference for partners working with ITS is that we provide the tools and support they need to win business, with their feedback being a vital component of this success. This also applies to our product roadmap. Our mission is to make it as easy and straightforward as possible to adopt full fibre services.

“As the needs of end-users are constantly evolving, we are responding to the demand for service wraps that help our partners to streamline their suppliers and integration of services, allowing them to concentrate on their sales pipeline and sell their wider portfolio of ‘over the top’ services. We will continue to develop our offer and do all that we can to support our partners in this way.”

ITS can connect any business in the UK through our own Faster Britain full fibre network, and through trusted operator relationships. Earlier this year we introduced a 2023 price freeze on existing contracts and all new on-net services, and applied a series of price reductions to provide further support to our Faster Britain approved partners amidst challenging market conditions. ITS also offers a price match promise to our 10G leased line FibreBright services.

To further support its partners in a challenging economic climate, in response to rising demand for 10G leased line services, ITS has also announced price reductions (up to 35%[1]) to FibreBright 1G to 5G bandwidths on 10G Bearers. Effective from 3^rd April, this new pricing will be available on ITS’ Faster Britain Portal, applied to eligible FibreBright products on three and five year contract lengths.

Pete England, Head of Product Development at ITS said: “We want to do all that we can to mitigate the impact that continued high inflation, interest rate rises, and price increases are having on our partners’ businesses and those of their customers.

“Thanks to our strong financial position we are able to take the brunt of supplier increases this year, providing certainty for our partners around these tariffs to allow them to manage their costs. Many of our partners have already fed back to us how this pricing strategy is going to help them save the time, cost, and resource that would be needed to administer price increases in-contract. We will continue to do all that we can to support our partners in this way.

“Our mission remains firm, to make it uncomplicated and straightforward for our partners to sell full fibre connectivity and more value-add ‘over the top’ services as ultrafast becomes the new norm. Accessed through our automated self-service Faster Britain portal and API plug-in, an online business connectivity comparison marketplace, partners can search service availability and options by postcode area, quote, and order to customer requirements. Each service option, whether provided via our own Faster Britain full fibre networks, or off-net through our trusted operator relationships, are quoted with an indicative lead-time, and all pricing is updated in real time, including off-net services. This is to help our partners manage end-user expectations, and their own operations and supply chains.”

^[1] Up to 37% off FibreBright on a 10G bearer depending on the bandwidth, contract term, and whether a Layer 2 or 3 service. 37% reduction illustration applies to Layer 2 4G on a 5 year term.