A HAMPSHIRE firm is launching a new broadband service in a bid to provide more efficient connections in the county.

M12 Solutions which offers fixed broadband services to businesses and communities has launched a local loop unbundled Internet service called Giganet.

The service will provide direct fibre optic broadband from two BT telephone exchanges in Winchester and Basingstoke.

Under the plans, there will be two elements of the service, one will be a faster option for businesses with 20 staff or above providing speeds of up to 1GB and a slower service that will offer speeds of up to 80mb.

The new service will initially focus on small to medium sized enterprises but will look to expand to residential properties in the future.

Matthew Skipsey, technical director of M12 Solutions “With this project, we can help ensure business and residential customers don’t have to deal with the impersonal and monolithic big names.

“Built to operate at high capacity, the service sends and receives an enormous 250 terabytes of data per month, which is very reassuring for our new Hampshire customers.

“The launch will open up the market within Hampshire and will be the first business to offer this type of technology.”

OFCOM launched unbundled broadband in 2008 which allows broadband companies to directly hook up with the exchanges, reducing the role of the ‘broadband middleman’.

The Fareham company previously launched Wessex Internet back in September 2012 which offered which offered a mix of fibre optic and fixed wireless based superfast broadband services to rural parts of North Dorset, South Wiltshire and East Somerset in England with 1,800 customers already signed up.

M12 have already won the ‘Best Wireless’ category at the Best Internet Services Providers’ Association 2016.

Giganet will be launched officially by the company next month at an event at the Norton Park Hotel in Winchester.