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PM pressed on BT’s broadband coverage


• Virgin Media says BDUK scheme wastes taxpayers’ money where networks already exist By Pádraig McGarrigle


Prime Minister David Cameron has asked BT to clarify its broadband rollout plans to determine whether rival ISPs can fill any gaps in nationwide coverage. BT and the UK government


are working together through the coalition’s Broadband Delivery UK scheme that will see 95 per cent of UK properties having access


to superfast


broadband (25 Mbps) coverage by the end of 2017.


There has been criticism Cameron: Claims success


from some homeowners that it is unclear whether their properties would be covered by the project.


Invested wisely


During Prime Minister’s Questions last month, Liberal Democrat MP Alan Reid asked Cameron to tell BT to “produce clear plans” on exactly what areas would be connected. In response, the PM said he had already asked BT to give more detail on the plans which billions of taxpayers’ money had been pumped into.


TalkTalk clocks slowest speed TalkTalk had


broadband speeds of all the major providers,


according


the slowest to


data


collected by broadband.co.uk. The internet service provider scored an average speed of just 9.1Mbps in March 2014,


significantly below the national average of 13.4Mbps. Broadband.co.uk collects its data from tens of thousands of people testing connection speeds via its website over the course of the month.


Virgin Media (38.2Mbps) and BT (22.33Mbps) retained the top two spots they have held for some time. EE had the third-fastest connection (14.2Mbps), followed by Plusnet (14.1Mbps) and Sky (11.2Mbps).


G.Fast to launch ‘copper’ internet A new


broadband technology could see older, copper


enhancement to telephone


wires


being used to deploy internet access with speeds 800Mbps.


of up to


G.Fast is in the final stages of standards being set for the technology and it is possible the first commercially-available services could be in place in Europe next year. Its proponents claim it will allow operators to provide higher-speed broadband at lower cost.


Best practice “It’s being driven by business decisions, the need to deliver higher speeds but deliver it cost effectively,” said Broadband Forum chief executive officer Robin Mersh. The Forum is involved in setting standards and best practice for


the broadband industry and it believes that a simpler approach to broadband is required. The technology could also help with the UK government’s desire to have most homes connected to superfast broadband. While VDSL2 technology, more commonly known as fibre optic, offers higher speeds, the installation process is much more expensive, labour intensive and annoying to the consumer. Older ADSL2 technology utilised copper phone wires already in the home and were installed by the user. “It [VDSL2] was a lot more


complex to deliver. With G.Fast we expect it to be going back to that more simple approach with much higher speeds,” explains Mersh. “When people are having fibre


deployed to the home, sometimes they react badly to having to have


Mersh: Simple approach


the line reinstalled and someone drilling holes in their wall. So even if there is no cost factor for the telcos, the hassle factor cannot be underestimated. Being able to say ‘we’ll just send you the box and some simple instructions’ – there’s a lot of value to that.”


He maintained that the money was being invested wisely. Cameron added: “However, I do not agree with some who think that BT has somehow not been putting its shoulder to the wheel. A massive investment is going into broadband: 10,000 homes and businesses are being connected every week. This is a real success story for our country.” The delivery


becoming increasingly controversial


project is with


murmurings from some rivals as to whether BT is receiving


state aid for commercial gain. Coverage is being delivered by a mixture of public funds from central and regional government as well as smaller sums from BT. Virgin Media believes that some areas being targeted by the BDUK scheme were already covered by its fibre- optic network. “There is no need or value for the taxpayer in using public funds to build networks where they already exist,” Virgin Media head of public affairs Daniel Butler told ISPreview.co.uk.


Europe planning fairer internet data charges


MEPs have passed a law that is likely to see every piece of data sent over the internet treated the same. It means


that telecoms


providers will be unable to charge third parties, such as streaming service providers, for faster network access. The bill


was passed


overwhelmingly by 534 votes to 25, with 58 abstentions and will now go to the Council of Member States for approval. In the US, Netflix recently signed a deal with ISP Comcast to ensure that it received a minimum service level for data sent over its bandwidth heavy service.


Investment Earlier this month UK ISPs told Mobile News they had no current plans to charge third parties for a minimum level of service but they did leave the door ajar for new business models in future.


Some operators had been arguing that companies profiting from their infrastructure should be making an investment for its upkeep. However, the new


Killock: Delighted


legislation appears to put these plans on hold. Campaigners,


too, innovation if large hold


the opposite view and have long held that it would stifle


corporations were able to pay for services which they could not. “We’re delighted that the European Parliament has backed an open, free and democratic internet and we hope that the British government does the same,” said Open Rights Group executive director Jim Killock.


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