Ofcom + BT ducts and poles

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Read more! It seems that once again all may not be as it seems in the telco nextgen finalthird world. Massive sigh of disappointment and frustration.

This blog post can be read at 5tth.blogspot.com


ISTR, Ofcom announced on October 7th 2010 that BT had to submit a draft reference offer for duct and pole access by mid-Jan 2011. However, on the very same day, the Wholesale Local Access Market Review pretty much scuppered the chances of the draft reference document holding any value.

For instance, use of ducts and poles for fixed wireless access, leased lines, mobile broadband etc is apparently not part of the undertakings being laid on BT's doorstep when permitting duct and pole access, according to the WLA. (You have to read, hop, skip and jump through the doc to get the whole picture).

That sort of wipes out much of the FiWi approach, and would leave the UK without the chance to build a FTTH network with a wireless cloud on top, use existing infrastructure to wireless easily across rural areas without needing to put up new masts, extend mobile coverage using femto cells on poles etc etc etc etc. On a "Let's think out of the box and into the future" front, it appears to be preventing most new network operators from getting close to the game.

What this sort of seems to boil down to, and I may be wrong, is that Ofcom have said, as they seem far too wont to do, "We won't do anything that threatens your SMP or future profits, OhBTWhoFundsUs."

Stuff the communities and consumers who are desperately trying to extricate this country from the enormous comms problems we suffer and to whom Ofcom has a statutory duty. Never mind the new entrants who are champing at the bit with innovative and exciting, low cost and faster to deploy solutions. Hell no, let's not give them a chance to threaten the great god of last century solutions.

Let's not even mention that, on the very same day, we have announced two things which are as near as dammit mutually exclusive. Allow the press to focus on the "BT must give access to ducts and poles" (which a quick Google will show you) and let's not pop the bubble by pointing out that, "Actually, that's not strictly true, oh media peeps, telcos, communities and consumers".

Any mention by Ofcom that they may have tied themselves into a knot? I can't find one. But then finding an Ofcom spokesperson isn't the easiest task, even on a bright, sunny day!

I'd welcome some input on all this as it would be superfine to discover I am mistaken. Meanwhile, over to Broken Telephone to blog there about this issue and follow on from Ian Grant's article on the subject.

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BT FTTx interview .... one month on

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Read more! One month after the initial announcement by BT about its FTTx plans, (which did not stun the majority of industry observers, except in the recurrent failure to achieve what BT ought to be able to in the first decade of the 21st century!), an unnamed BT spokesman offers answers to some questions from ISPreview about the plans.

It is almost too tempting to take the entire article to pieces and not congratulate BT on at least taking some hesitant steps forward into FTTx.... but one feels that the items of note should be:

1) The assumption that FTTC should cost more to the consumer - the savings on opex over the coming years should prevent this entirely. FTTC should not be a premium product, nor priced as such. It is, again, an interim technology, as was ADSL, until the end game is reached - FTTH/P and hence true next generation access. (Interestingly, BT seem to have noted the outcry about their use of the acronym 'NGA' for ADSL2+ and FTTC, and avoid it altogether in this interview)

2) The admission that this (FTTC) is merely copper overlay, and thereby further sweating of the copper asset, as many industry observers were quick to point out. However, it should be mentioned that VDSL is touted as the tech to be used. This would seem to imply that focus on sub-loop unbundling regulation is now urgent.

3) The trial location will be announced during the autumn. This does not quite hold true with previous announcements that government and regional development agencies etc would have a say. It does however seem to imply that BT are in a rush to begin the deployment and are willing to do so without needing to seek public funds at this point. This does NOT bode well for digitally excluded areas, including rural and remote, who should be in the first wave of FTTx deployment, as well as (possibly) the likes of Milton Keynes etc (unless the demand there suddenly makes it seem more attractive than it has in the past).

4) Will we now see BT start to apply rigorous pressure to Ofcom about opening up Virgin's network?

5) More bluff about ADSL2+. It will not address the digital divide for far too many people and ADSL2+ is a first mile technology (a poor relative of VDSL) and is nothing to do with 21CN which is a middle mile solution to opex costs and network paucity in the core network.

6) And that old bugbear - The failure by ISPreview to use the correct terminology.... it is 'first mile' not last.

This is obviously just my opinion so your thoughts? Please post.
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