16 million UK homes could have ADSL

Still some that can't

Two thirds of the UK - some 16 million homes - can now hook up to ADSL, according to the latest figures.

Crowing louder than a Senegal football fan, BT claims that 1,115 exchanges have now been upgraded for broadband.

Which means 66 per cent of UK homes - 73 per cent of Net users - are within striking distance of a DSL-enabled exchange.

It also claims that with 11,000 new connections a week, demand is "going through the roof".

In total, BT Wholesale claims that it has connected almost 250,000 DSL lines. BT has set itself a target of one million DSL lines by summer 2003.

In April BT announced its intention to upgrade 100 more exchanges in the UK to deliver broadband services, with a further 500 more under review.

At the time Paul Reynolds, chief exec of BT Wholesale, said: "The work in these 100 exchanges is our response to customer demand.

"People have told us, in sufficient numbers, that they want broadband services." ®