Why Not All Fibre Is the Same

“Is it fibre?”

It’s one of the first questions people ask — and rightly so.

But here’s the part that often gets missed:

Not all fibre connections are the same.

Two services can both be described as “full fibre” and deliver very different performance, resilience and support.

If you’re choosing connectivity for your business, it’s worth understanding the differences.

1. Contended vs Dedicated

Most standard fibre broadband services are contended.

That means you share capacity with other users in your area. At quiet times, performance is excellent. At busy times, speeds can fluctuate.

A dedicated leased line, on the other hand, provides uncontended bandwidth. The capacity is yours alone — consistently available, regardless of who else is online.

For businesses heavily reliant on cloud platforms, VoIP and video, that consistency can make a significant difference.

2. Asymmetrical vs Symmetrical Speeds

Some fibre services offer fast download speeds but much lower upload speeds.

That might suit streaming at home — but modern businesses upload constantly:

Cloud backups
Microsoft 365
Hosted VoIP
Video conferencing
Large file transfers

Symmetrical services (where upload and download speeds match) are often better suited to business use.

3. Service Levels Matter

Two fibre services may look identical on paper — until something goes wrong.

Key differences include:

Fault response times
Fix time targets (SLAs)
Out-of-hours support
Monitoring and escalation

A residential-style fibre service may take days to resolve a fault.
A business-grade circuit may offer 4-hour fix targets.

When downtime affects staff and customers, those differences matter.

4. Resilience and Routing

Some fibre products are delivered over shared infrastructure with limited resilience.

Others offer:

Diverse routing
Automatic failover
Proactive monitoring
Backup connectivity options

If your business would struggle without internet for even a few hours, resilience should form part of the decision.

5. The Internal Network Still Counts

Even the best fibre circuit won’t perform properly if:

The router is underpowered
Switches are outdated
Wi-Fi design is poor
No traffic prioritisation is configured

Connectivity is a system — not just a line.

The Sensible Question

Instead of asking:

“Is it fibre?”

A better question is:

“Is this the right type of fibre for how we work?”

At KIPCOM Limited (Kingston Technologies Group), we help businesses across Hull and the Humber region understand the practical differences between fibre products — and choose what genuinely suits their needs.

Because in business connectivity, the details matter.

Rod Walker
Tel: 01482 291292
Email: rod@ktgl.co.uk
Web: http://www.ktgl.co.uk

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