Nildram moving lines to LLU?

I got an email yesterday from Nildram - my ADSL Max line is due to be switched to LLU later this month

Here is the text of the email: -

In reply to:

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Local Loop Unbundling

Over the next few months Nildram will be changing some customer connections to be Local Loop Unbundled. This simply means that Nildram will utilise improved technology within the telephone exchange to manage the broadband service from the exchange to the customer's premises. In future, Nildram will be able to offer faster speeds and improved products and services.

Benefits include:

Enhanced service resiliency
Future speed capability of up to 24Mb*
Greater flexibility in the range of services Nildram will be able to offer
Your service on the High Wycombe Exchange will be transferred to our LLU service between:

10 and 18 July 2006


How will the implementation of LLU affect your service?

During the programme, you may experience a short outage of five to ten minutes when this work reaches your exchange.

It is possible that you may be unable to access your Broadband service immediately after the work has been carried out. If this happens, simply power-down your modem or router and leave it switched off for at least 30 minutes. Then switch your modem/router back on and the service should connect as usual. If you are still experiencing problems after performing this process, please request technical assistance from the Nildram LLU Helpdesk by calling 0870 386 0400.

We appreciate your patience during this period and apologise in advance for any inconvenience this may cause you.

For further information, please look at our LLU Frequently Asked Questions.

Regards,

Broadband Team
Nildram

* Actual speeds are dependant on the distance from the exchange and condition of the line.

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Are there any issues I need to consider or should I let this go ahead......? I presume they are using UKOnline's/Easynet's equipment? Any advice appreciated.

A Freedom2Surf user has got the same email:

http://bbs.adslguide.org.uk/showthreaded.php?Cat=&Board=f2s&Number=2543349

I don't think Nildram use Easynet as a wholesale provider do they? I think it could be Pipex LLU being used by ISPs in the Pipex group.

_________________
Adam
NewNet 8050 S
Support for F2S users @ Freedom2Support

Either way its very good news..

<n>ildram

For those living in viable areas

__________________
<n> Broadband2
Billion 7402VGP
MRTG Graphs

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Edited by PAIN (Tue 04-Jul-06 23:26:20)

Hope they do sunderland north exchange.

Will they be doing prices like ukonline? If they do move to LLU.

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**AOL Silver Broadband 512k/256k**
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I wouldn't expect this to affect pricing in the short term as they will want to keep products common across all customers to avoid confusion and they will also need to recover the investment involved in rolling out LLU hardware so don't expect anything major to happen quickly.

I'd imagine they're using Pipex's equipment on a few exchanges, I can't see Nildram having the independent financial oompf to perform their own LLU rollout.

There are a lot of unanswered questions. Hopefully this move will be a good thing, but there is no way of knowing without spice-enduced foresight (see Dune). I'd question the fact that customers are being involuntarily put onto the service, that we don't know if there is a viable way out of it if things go wrong (LLU migrations are still in their infancy at best) and the general lack of information.

Don't get me wrong. IMHO LLU is a 'Good Thing' for ISP's, the industry in general and customers. But it needs to be handled correctly and I've seen other ISP's really drop the ball.

Hove exchange LLU work carried out yesterday (3rd July)

I suffered a 20 minute outage on BB and phone line. Strangely though upon reconnection my sync speed had gone back to pre max 2270kbps speed test suggesting a 2meg line.

1 email to Nildram followed up less than 24hrs later and Rob looked into the problem. He suggests that one of the benefits of LLU is being able to resolve issues more quickly.

Within 20 minutes he was back on the phone saying yes I had been reconnected at 2mef (fixed) but had asked toe engineers to put me back on max.

Low and behold came home this evening to see the modem re synced at 8019kbps !!

maybe they caused a problem to demonstrate how quickly they can now fix them, or is that just me being cynical.

Having been with Nildram for over 4 years I have nothing but admiration for them as we move through these ever increasing technical upgrades??

Hi

I can confirm that Nildram and f2s are delivering services via the Pipex LLU rollout. A number of key exchanges have been indentified and there will be a rollout through the remainder of 2006. We have completed Perivale and started on Brixton and Hove, although we have been let down by a supplier on Brixton and we will only been able to migrate half of those that we had originallly planned. Customers have been kept fully informed of these changes. As we are in the early stages of this rollout, not all customers on an exchange will be migrated but once we are fully confident of the end to end process, all customers on future exchanges will be migrated to LLU. Then we will move into the phase of including new provides. Once these stages are complete this is when we would expect to be able to offer faster speeds and improved services.

Regards


Helen Hudson
Customer Services