Researchers in Korea have discovered a way of making plastic optical fibre which could reduce installation costs of the 'last mile'.

With costs of £15bn being touted as the cost of providing fibre to UK homes, the cable developed by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology could reduce this cost. While it won't compete with traditional glass fibre cables for speed it is still possible to transmit at around 2.5Gbps and is far cheaper to produce and easier to use.

Although much of fibre installation costs are in the actual digging and installation, rather than the material cost, it may not reduce the cost significantly. But for areas who have a clear run for cable, such as conduits etc this could provide a wothwhile benefit.