USO Consultation Document Announces there is no Phase 3

Did the USO consultation document, described and linked to here, become the place where UK.gov has made it known that future upgrades to superfast or better speeds will now be demand-led rather than a publicly funded scheme as seen in Phase 1 and 2 of BDUK.

Is this good or bad news for the Alt-Nets? Gigaclear and the like, will of course target larger villages first, those groups of 6 to 10 properties typically located between those villages will be left out again.

What does this mean for the intervention areas? Are they now non-existent?

Does this leave the many locations with groups of 4 to 8 houses in limbo, especially as many of these are Market 1?

Maybe I have read it wrong and am happy for somebody to tell me what I have missed or overlooked.

Further, if you look at what the document says about the USO, it does not look like a USO would actually come into affect until 2020 by my estimation.

I get the impression that slow EU state aid approval has thrown a spanner in the governments plans, so I don't think they can say anything right now.

But it is indeed strange that talk of a 10 Mbps USO is taking centre stage, and the phase 3 superfast plans (post market pilot) have gone quiet.

I think the USO discussions will determine a fibre/wireless strategy, draw in both industry and government funding, but bog down between BT and altnets.

I wonder what percentage of properties will be affected with a 10 Mbps threshold, if 24Mbps is truly delivered to 96%?

cannot say I am unhappy, I think the subsidies have been excessive since its allowing villages to put cities in the shadows now, city dwellers can only dream of FTTP. Only sky and talktalk are the companies I know off that rolled out any form of FTTP in a urban area.

As an example do city dwellers get subsidises to make their healthcare access on par with villagers? no, its a decision you make when choosing somewhere to live.

Digital Strategy paper due later in the year, post local elections etc

USO was always due for 2020

Don't recall any part of the USO saying there won't be more public money to go further.

SNP has said 100% superfast for Scotland, but am wary as they interleave superfast and fibre based coverage targets too often to be totally sure.

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

Don't recall any part of the USO saying there won't be more public money to go further.

In the pdf document found on this link. If I quote a few paragraphs from it, as I read them, it definitely signposts this is the intent. And given BT have stated it would cost them $2bn to achieve a 10Mb USO given the 'right regulatory framework' which is about OFCOM regulation not to do with receiving public funds.

Phase 2 of the [BDUK] programme aims to extend superfast to 95 percent of the UK by December 2017, and this is being delivered through 47 local projects.

So getting to 95% as a result of BDUK Phase 2.

Without further intervention however there will still be significant numbers of homes and businesses whose access to high-speed broadband will lag behind the majority. One-off interventions do not allow for speed increases and changes in consumer expectations over time, and so a further roll-out programme similar in design to those already undertaken by Government would not address the problem in a sustainable way in the long term.

So this suggests further intervention is needed, they want see solutions which have a migration path to ultrafast +100Mb speeds.

We believe that, for those premises that will not have been reached by commercial investment or by the Government�s interventions by the end of the current planned programmes, the time has come for a demand-led approach.

After BDUK Phase 2, the final 5% (as above Phase 2 will reach 95% superfast coverage) will not be provided for in the same en-mass style as seen in BDUK Phase 1 and 2. It will be demand led.

Which of course will see the easy to reach locations dealt with first.

Given the high costs of providing broadband access to premises in remote areas it is right that this is done on request, rather than rolling it out and waiting to see if people in those areas want to be connected.

Well kind of Yes, but will that be enforced in some way? That is going to be difficult to police.

So if 10 properties in a village of 20 ask for this, versus 10 properties in a cluster of properties in a town of 10000, which one is seen to have generated the 'larger demand'?

We know from the various interventions that the Government has made to date that it is unlikely that everyone will want to be connected, even if that option is made available to them, and so we do not believe that an additional broadband roll-out programme at this time is proportionate or would represent value for money.

And there you have it, although it states intervention is required in the earlier quotes, there will be no roll-out programme.

I take that to mean there is no Phase 3 at all. I guess if I squint at this I could admit it allows for public money to be used as a part of the demand led approach but the wording certainly seems not to favour that at all.

And in this demand led approach, what does that mean for the people in each LA running the BDUK scheme? They will have no role in this phase? How will people with the demand be matched with potential suppliers? Will UK.gov be enabling that match making?

It is a consultation paper, so if you think that no phase 3 is a bad thing then make sure to reply.

Phase 3 was always going to be different to phases 1 & 2, and to some extent there are value for money questions to be asked if you think you might end up spending £20,000 to connect one farm and 2 holiday cottages. Especially if a USO capable solution is available that costs a lot less.

As for the local authority project staff, some will carry on as they have strong demand stimulation schemes to ensure clawback targets are met, others will just shift the staff to other departments.

So you have lots of questions, but no-one can answer them until
a) USO is fully defined
b) Next Digital Report is published in a few months and how .gov wants to push for ultrafast

Today is the last day of the consultation if you are going to send in a reply.

Anybody have experience of how long it usually takes them to put up the results on a consultation?

The USO consultation just says check back soon as they are analysing feedback https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/broadban...

I would not expect anything until July.

Godsell

You may want to look at the OFCOM consultation as well. You have until 23rd June to respond to that one see post below for details.

http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/regulation/t/447538...