I agree. I also can't understand why Be/O2 are being so slow.

In reply to a post by Yves:

I agree. I also can't understand why Be/O2 are being so slow.

Exactly; it's not like BT's fibre roll-out has come as a sudden surprise.
I think what took the time (and is what BE, O2, Talk-Talk, Sky, etc. were waiting on) was Ofcom & BT faffing around releasing details/prices for an open-access feature of FTTC/FTTP.
The LLU providers obviously wanted to see details of BT's pricing structure, evidence of whether the local loop (exchange to cabinets) would be un-contended and to work out how/where they would connect onto the BT network.

Of course, Talk-Talk are ready to go now (but it remains to be seen whether they're simply reselling BT's own product, or are actually selling their version of a partially unbundled solution - I can't see Talk-Talk would already be able to implement links from BT's network to their own access points inside every one of exchanges).

The up-shot is all this delaying will just mean more Sky, O2, BE customers will jump to FTTC before said companies get their act together.
I shall be sorry to leave BE (never before have I stayed with an ADSL ISP for over three years - and that really does reflect their product being the best one I've tried so far), but if it looks like they're still at least six months to a year from a nationwide release, I'll be jumping to either Infinity or the offerings from ADSL24 or Aquiss (would love to go with IDnet or A&A but even my current 4.5Mbps usage is too high for them).

Edited by adebov (Sun 17-Jul-11 18:50:21)

The USP for the likes of BE, Sky, etc is that they do "unlimited" "unmanaged" packages - which, of course, depends on having a decent backhaul to be able to meet these promises.

I can't help but think that the reason they are not jumping into fibre is because they're not economically able to keep the same promises, when the existing bottleneck (the copper part) changes to fibre, and a larger percentage of customers are also likely to get the top speeds.

BE have already hinted that they want to keep the USP going - but that it is going to cost a lot more.

Its all part of the conundrum - is unlimited bandwidth free? Or expensive?

In reply to a post by WWWombat:

BE have already hinted that they want to keep the USP going - but that it is going to cost a lot more.

Indeed; they've aleady said their FTTC product will cost more than their current ADSL unlimited products.
I fully expect that (and have no problem with paying more - after all; we were all paying around £40 a month, to get 512kbps, back in 2001).
Even BT's "unlimited" product costs around £10 a month more than BE's current, so I fully expect BE's offering to be even higher (my guess would be around £35 a month - we'll see how close I am sometime in the next year or two).

The big problem (as I see it) for BE, O2 & Sky is if they don't get a move on they could be the only ISPs in the country not to offer the next generation high speed access (which wouldn't look good for BE; given that was their main selling point in the first place).
They could get left behind and if they don't have a product in the next couple of years, I can't see them holding onto many customers (especially BE - as they're more expensive than O2 & Sky, I guess most of their customer base is people who want fast unlimited connections - exactly the type of people who will jump ship the second FTTC becomes available).

If they don't act soon, this could be the end of BE (as they'll have no customers left anyway)!

Of course, Talk-Talk are ready to go now (but it remains to be seen whether they're simply reselling BT's own product, or are actually selling their version of a partially unbundled solution

Live. £10pm "Boost". I believe it is GEA. ie only on LLU'ed Openreach FTTC exchanges and going into their own backhaul.

Edited by RobertoS (Sun 17-Jul-11 23:27:03)

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Live. £10pm "Boost". I believe it is GEA. ie only on LLU'ed Openreach FTTC exchanges and going into their own backhaul.

In that case Talk-Talk are really showing up Sky, BE & O2.

Well Sky did that trial around the Olympics area in London, then they came up with the consortium idea that seems to have gone very quiet, and these days silence.

As for Be/O2 - the boat has sailed I think. I forget the quarterly reporting date, but I don't expect to see broadband subscriber increases!

I think Telefonica could very well be concentrating its development and budget on 4G/LTE, and will let landline broadband atrophy once that is running well.

What worries me about Sky is the number of different trials they seem to be playing with.
One minute they're looking at using BT's FTTC product (GEA), the next they're looking into blowing their own fibres down BT's ducts (which will, presumably, mean a Sky cab by the side of most BT FTTC cabs).

As for BE/O2, I think they've faffed around for far too long and will miss the boat entirely.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

I think Telefonica could very well be concentrating its development and budget on 4G/LTE, and will let landline broadband atrophy once that is running well.

Lol. Define 'running well'.

I think another problem is that many people just don't need what Be offers. The usage caps for other ISPs are plenty for most people and even if you are throttled the speed drop is hardly a problem. You don't need 30Mb/s and if your ISP chops you down by 50% you still have a more than good enough connection.

I honestly think the market has matured and Be's vision of FTTC would be the equivalent of a Ferrari. The difference being that I think few people would think Be was 'sexy' and they won't be able to find enough people to pay the premium.