RURAL businesses across the North could be heading for the broadband fast lane after an entrepreneur hooked up to a new satellite service.
Gerald McDonald, of Old Hall Farm, Gatenby, near Northallerton last night issued an open invitation for Richmond MP William Hague to see the new Tooway broadband in action.
The service claims to deliver high-speed internet access anywhere in the UK, including rural areas that are not currently served by fixed-line broadband services.
Mr McDonald subscribed after losing patience with the sluggish internet speeds that were holding back his global cleaning business.
North Yorkshire is one of four areas chosen by the Government to pilot a new generation of high-speed broadband, but Mr McDonald was among the thousands of rural householders and businesses stuck with slower speeds.
He wrote to Mr Hague to remind the Foreign Secretary of his pre-election pledges to boost the rural economy by introducing better broadband access. Mr Hague's swift response pointed him towards Broadbandyorkshire.com, a campaign led by Julian Smith, MP for Skipton and Ripon, which aims to place the County at the forefront of superfast internet.
Mr McDonald is now using the Tooway service to boost his contracting business, HydroBlast, which uses high pressure water jets for a wide range of applications; from removing graffiti to cutting concrete.
He has also launched a satellite dish installation service for fellow business and domestic users wishing to join the broadband revolution. Pricing starts from £24.99 per month, with the option of buying the receiver box for £199, or renting it for an extra £10 per month. There is also a one-off installation fee of about £200, or customers can choose to fit the dish themselves.
"For people like me who can't link up to fixed-line broadband via the BT network this could be a real godsend," said Mr McDonald.
"We would love Mr Hague to come up and see what we are doing. This is not about having a go at what the Government or the local council are doing. I took the initiative rather than wait for help."
Hydroblast was established in the wake of the foot-and-mouth crisis when it helped with the rural clean-up operation. When its client base spread to firms in Chile, Iceland and Pakistan, it needed a reliable internet connection which could handle large amounts of data.
"We can now be connected to the rest of the world, fast," added Mr McDonald.
For more information visit www.fsatb.co.uk; email admin@fsatb.co.uk, or call 01677428786.
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