Declaring the result of its contest for bringing superfast broadband connections to parts of the UK, BT has named six rural communities which bagged the highest proportion of support from their residents; thereby indicating notable demand in these areas to get online.

The six communities, in alphabetical order, include: Baschurch in Shropshire, Blewbury in Oxfordshire, Caxton in Cambridgeshire, Innerleithen in Tweeddale, Madingley in Cambridgeshire, and Whitchurch in Hampshire.

According to BT, it will be by early 2012 that each of these six communities will get a superfast broadband hub, which will enable homes and businesses to connect at download speeds of up to 40 megabits per second.

Noting that the countrywide contest was essentially an Internet-based campaign designed for discovering areas of highest broadband demand, and that the plan witnessed 360,000 people voting for their own towns and villages, Gavin Patterson, CEO of BT Retail, said: "We've been so impressed by the passion and commitment of the people who signed up to campaign for their areas up and down the country."

The BT project clearly underlines plans for the digital economy; and is part of the company's involvement in a government-aided drive aimed at bringing broadband to all parts of the UK. The scheme will receive some public funds from unspent parts of the television licence fee.