INDUSTRY NEWS CONNECTIONS COLIN ANNETTE, DIRECTOR, BT WHOLESALE
THE ISSUE of broadband speed continues to dominate the headlines in the wake of the recently published Ofcom response to how speeds are advertised. In summary, the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has been asked to ban ISPs from advertising broadband speeds with the ‘up to‘ prefix, with suggestions from Ofcom that the industry should move towards typical speed ranges. A potential flaw with this approach is that typical speed ranges will potentially be highly misleading as the average performance will vary depending on where people live. Another danger of enforcing typical speed ranges is that it could encourage more ISPs to cherry pick customers who will increase their average, leaving customers in rural and suburban areas underserved. This of course is at odds with the government’s aim of bringing a greater range of broadband services to more rural parts of the country.
While the Ofcom report does acknowledge that upload speeds are also important, speed is just one of many factors that affect performance – latency, packet loss, DNS and jitter also need to be considered. The research looked at the consumer experience of broadband, but many of these issues are just as relevant to service providers and their business users as well. Service providers know this. Not all broadband is equal and their business customers expect a network capability that provides an exceptional quality of experience. After all, increasingly broadband is underpinning business critical areas such as VoIP, videoconferencing,
DMSL in link with Fidelity
Colin Annette
teleworking, remote working and data transfer, not to mention applications such as electronic point of sale (EPOS) units and CCTV. None of these applications are particularly bandwidth hungry, but the way they are delivered through the network can have a major impact on the quality of the end user experience.
Getting the most out of broadband applications comes down to more than speed and that is what BT Wholesale has been addressing. For example, from the start of WBC rollout, all BT Wholesale’s ADSL2+ exchanges were supported by Gigabit Ethernet backhaul links and now we’re introducing 10Gig backhaul links. BT’s innovations also keep the B-RAS profile in step with the line rate using ‘Adaptive Max Logic’ which increases an end users’ broadband line rate more quickly. We’ve also increased our minimum peak throughput levels for both consumers and businesses – guaranteeing minimum throughput for business customers – something we believe is first for the UK.
So let’s be clear: When it comes to broadband, speed isn’t the be-all and end-all and we are not the only player in the industry to think this way.
CONVERGED solutions dis- tributor DMSL is expanding the options for dealers by provid- ing access to a broader range of fixed line, broadband and mobile options through an agreement with Fidelity Group. The agreement gives part- ners access to a full range of O2 solutions offered by Fid- elity, complementing the BT, TalkTalk Business and other big name services it already offers. The Fidelity deal also gives them use of the company’s Anvil billing platform which provides businesses with a sim- ple ‘one-bill’ solution for joined up communications services. John Carter, MD of DMSL, said: “All businesses are looking to reduce their telecoms costs while retaining maximum flex- ibility. Inevitably, that is going to lead to much more fixed and mobile convergence. “The most cost-effective way to meet customer needs in the changing SME market will be to provide a mix of services. “Our agreement with Fidelity will enable resellers to offer their customers a wide range of best- of-breed solutions from leading
John Carter
suppliers, but with a single bill. That’s a really attractive option for smaller businesses that want to save money but also want to keep things simple.”
DMSL, Fidelity and their resellers will work together to meet all the needs of customers, says Carter.
“It will be a three-way part- nership,” he said. “Fidelity will provide the services and man- age the billing, while resellers retain the full management and control of the customer. “Through working together,
DMSL and Fidelity Group can help resellers gain first-mover advantage in this part of the market,” claimed Carter.
TalkTalk set to build on Opal brand
TALKTALK Business has def- ended its decision to wipe out over 15 years of legacy in the channel by rebranding Opal. Andy Hollingworth, Director of Partners, said: “TalkTalk is one of the most widely recog- nised brands in the UK. People know it and trust it and we felt that the TalkTalk brand equity would give us a real edge in the business market. “TalkTalk Group is a leader in B2B markets as well as resi- dential, it will help cement us in the market alongside other ‘super telcos’ such as BT, Cable & Wireless, Sky and Virgin.” According to Hollingworth the reaction has been ‘almost universally positive’. He said: “Our larger partners have accepted the rebrand as a logical step in our development. Our challenge is to demonstrate to smaller, developing partners that we are equally committed to help grow their business and provide the same support as we have done for the last decade. “For our dealers who rely on the brand, we have updated our toolbox portal which provides all the assets to help market their solutions.”
Resellers called on to be upfront about true cost of mobile data
RESELLERS are being urged to advise customers of European Commission directives that have been designed to put an end to ‘shock’ mobile bills. Under the directive, intro- duced last year, operators must provide customers with the opportunity to determine in advance how much they want to spend before the service is ‘cut-off’.
Lorrin White, Operations Director at mobile solutions provider Total, told partners they should weigh up the ‘rev- enue against integrity’ argu-
2011
Marriot St. Pierre, Chepstow,Gwent. 16th June 2011
10 COMMS DEALER MARCH 2011 Lorrin White
ment in addressing the issue. Addressing resellers at Total’s Focus partner conference held in London last month, White asked: “How many of your cus- tomers truly understand the cost of data on a mobile?”
On getting a ‘no show’ of hands, she added: “None of you have educated customers about data usage because it makes money. Do you believe your relationships with customers are good enough to not tell them about data usage costs?” Unveiling a new Total solu- tion that will automatically advise customers of mobile data costs, wherever they may be in the world, White said: “This will prevent disputes with cus- tomers and is an opportunity to position yourself differently as a trusted advisor.”
Register now at
www.margin-in-voice-data.com
www.comms-dealer.com
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