BT Group Plc (BT) selected 69 locations in the East of England, London, Scotland, Wales and Yorkshire where it intends to roll out high-speed fiber broadband by the summer of 2010. The identified areas cover 1.5 million residential units.

The plan calls for a doubling of the originally targeted pace of deployment. It intends to provide broadband-related services to 10 million homes by 2012 with a capital expenditure of £1.5 billion (approximately $2 billion). BT will allow service providers to license its equipment on a wholesale basis to support the spirit of a competitive market.

Super-fast broadband can be delivered in a number of ways, with fiber, cable, copper wires, mobile, fixed wireless and satellite each having a role to play. A number of companies have already announced plans to invest in and roll out super-fast broadband in the UK over these networks. These include Virgin Media (VMED), which already offers super-fast broadband and plans to extend this offer across its entire network, and BT, which plans to upgrade its copper access network with fibre-optic cable.

Communication providers, such as BT, will have the freedom to price wholesale super-fast broadband products themselves without any regulatory intervention. This will allow investors to make an appropriate return on their investment, based on their risk but pricing will be done at a level that the market can bear, given the ready availability of alternative broadband services.

BT Group Plc is an incumbent phone company providing fixed-line and data services to the United Kingdom. It owns or has stakes in operations in North America, the Asia/Pacific region, and Western Europe. For strategic purposes, BT differentiates its business into two distinct markets: Traditional business lines and New Wave business lines, such as Broadband, Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Mobility and Managed Services.

We continue to maintain our Hold recommendation on BT.

Read the full analyst report on “BT”
Zacks Investment Research

Last 5 posts by Zacks Market Commentaries

• Zacks Industry Outlook Highlights: AIG, PartnerRe Ltd., Manulife Financial Corporation, Phoenix Companies Inc. and Universal American Corp. - Press Releases - February 9th, 2010
• Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights: OPNET Technologies, Vulcan Materials, Toyota Motor, Xerox Corporation and Urban Outfitters Inc. - Press Releases - February 9th, 2010
• New Business Win for Callidus - Revised - Analyst Blog - February 9th, 2010
• Zacks #5 Rank Additions for Tuesday - Zacks Tale of the Tape - February 9th, 2010
• Callidus Partners with Seven Seas - Revised - Analyst Blog - February 9th, 2010