FTTC goes mainstream

[dujas]

BT retail will be taking orders for FTTC products from the 25th of January, the service is called BT Infinity.

[Simon]

Is that because it will be infinitely bad? 

[Rik]

Probably.

[David]

The worst lager in the world   

I just checked my number and according to Bt........I would LOSE speed 

[Inkblot]

The worst lager in the world   

I just checked my number and according to Bt........I would LOSE speed 

Same here - BT are quoting me 6m which is a lot slower than my old IDNet Max (Usually synched at 8m) or my current IDNet ADSL2+ (Usually synchs at around 11m)

[David]

Like me you are going to sign up then ink ? 

[Sebby]

I can't wait to see what happens to BT's network.

[Rik]

Congestion, congestion, congestion...

[Technical Ben]

The BT "can I get it" button says "Great news! We have tested your line and you can get the UK's most complete broadband, BT Total Broadband. you can get: 6.5mb".
So it defaults to ASDL2 etc if you cannot get FTTC. However, I they are cheaky there and don't make that obvious. So would that explain the slow speeds they are talking about?
Does FTTC suffer from the same troube that effects ASDL? I would have thought there is no "noise" on the line (unless the badgers all have torches now ). But what about distance?

[David]

Well they are very sett in their ways 

[Rik]

Distance shouldn't matter, Ben, as fibre can have noiseless repeaters on long runs.

[Noreen]

Is that because it will be infinitely bad? 

Doesn't the "I" in IDNet stand for "Infinity"?

[Rik]

It does.

[David]

Doesn't the "I" in IDNet stand for "Infinity"?

And beyond 

[Rik]

Where no man has ever exchanged packets.

[David]

  You are not getting me banned 

[Rik]

 

Go on, it's ages since I've done that... 

[David]

  Yes all of 

[Fox]

Go on, it's ages since I've done that... 

But I still think it was a bit harsh banning your own wife Rik 

[D-Dan]

I just did the test - but I'm not convinced it is testing FTTC speed. It said I could get something approximating what I already have, too ( though slower) despite my being in eyesight of the cabinet, and in terms of distance, maybe 200 yards.

I think the speed estimation is still based on the copper connection.

We are due to go live with FTTC here in March (though I've yet to see a BT engineer even approach the cabinet) so maybe I'll try again after that.

Steve

[esh]

To be honest 8Mbit down is just dandy, but I could really do with that upband rate. That said 800Kbit is godlike compared to the 128Kbit I used to run on.

[DarkStar]

Just tried it and says I can get 2.5mb download now but the top line says they are upgrading my exchange and I will be able to get the same 2.5mb download when upgraded 29 June 2010. That will be good 
According to the info in my IDNet portal I am/was due to be upgraded in Feb 2010, it looks as though there is another time slip. Well, fancy that. It will have slipped by over 18 months since BT first gave an activation date for my exchange.
Although I'm not all that far from Martlesham there obviously isn't a BT executive living in my neck of the woods 
WBC - I'll believe when I see it never mind FTTC.


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[Rik]

The slippages on WBC have been unforgivable, especially when combined with the backhaul issues. WE can only hope BT learn from it. Sadly, I fear they will not have done.

[Noreen]

My nephew who works for BT on the new fibre installations (in office) is working seven days a week at the moment!

[Rik]

But is he actually doing anything, Noreen.

[bobleslie]

 

[Glenn]

Anyone want to buy a 2 bed bungalow in Sandhurst, I need to move 200yds, to a house on Crowthorne exchange, 

[Rik]

I'll buy one 200 yards up the road, Glenn.

[Noreen]

But is he actually doing anything, Noreen.

I'm assured that he is, Rik, he's a very conscientious chap.

[Rik]

Ask him if he could do an early rollout here, could you.

[Lance]

And here!

We are only 25 miles or so from adastral park, so if BT want to try out new tech not to far from where they develop it...

[Noreen]

Ask him if he could do an early rollout here, could you.

Huh! What about me?

[Rik]

You've already got much better speed than me.

[Noreen]

Just heard that my nephew is working from 7.30am to around 5.30pm Mon to Sat and until around 2.30pm on Sunday.

[Rik]

It's not that far to Milton Keynes, Noreen.

[Noreen]

From where, Rik?

[Rik]

Anywhere.

[Noreen]

I saw my nephew this afternoon and he said that at the moment he and his team are working on fibre installation for a couple of the mobile phone companies, working to a deadline. So he doesn't know anything about dates for ordinary broadband customers.

[Rik]

So we're not good enough for him, eh?

The amount of fibre going in the ground at the moment must be vast.

[Noreen]

He gets less than 2mbps on his own connection, BT of course.

[Rik]

 

I almost know how he feels.

[colonelsun]

But aren't BT just duplicating what Virgin Media has done in the same areas and just hoping to mop up disgruntled VM subscribers?

I see no evidence BT are busting a gut to upgrade anyone living in the sticks.

[dujas]

BT Openreach are targeting the most profitable areas for FTTC upgrades, which VM and LLU ISPs also target...

[zappaDPJ]

BT Openreach are targeting the most profitable areas for FTTC upgrades, which VM and LLU ISPs also target...

Indeed, I live opposite an estate which only the very rich can afford and they had the FTTC cab put in around 2 years ago. It was one if the first in the country I believe. The slightly odd thing is according to BT I'm not on it and I can see it from my front gate 

[Pix]

I see no evidence BT are busting a gut to upgrade anyone living in the sticks.

I'm lucky enough to be in one of BT's 2 FTTC rural trial areas and our exchange got FTTC this month. I wouldn't say I'm exactly in the sticks but we are usually among the last to get anything to the extent that we still can't get Channel 5 on the telly without a sattellite dish. A local syndicate was (and still is) looking to set up FTTP in the area independently which probably had a lot to do with us being bumped up the queue for once.

[Glenn]

I have been talking to our BT engineer at work. According to him, BT will start installing the equipment next month, but the BT announcement was a live date of yesterday. 

[Rik]

Par for the course, Glenn.

[Technical Ben]

Is that why we have had so much trouble? BT have been running on a golfing score system? The lower your connection speed the better!

[Rik]

[troesma]

The slippages on WBC have been unforgivable, especially when combined with the backhaul issues. WE can only hope BT learn from it. Sadly, I fear they will not have done.

Meaning, quite simply, that you're buying a ticket for a tour into the wild, wild west. I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.

[troesma]

Is that why we have had so much trouble? BT have been running on a golfing score system? The lower your connection speed the better!

Epic..! 

[zappaDPJ]

Hmmm, BT have just rang me and offered a BT Infinity package (option 2). I'm now totally confused. I know we have an FTTC enabled exchange but neither BT (via the web) or IDNet via 3 sources can confirm that my line is FTTC ready.

FTTC via BT would solve a potential bandwidth allowance issue I'm going to have from now on but I'll be damned if I'm moving away from IDNet.

[Rik]

BT's systems do leave a lot to be desired, or is it to the imagination?

[bobleslie]

Hmmm, BT have just rang me and offered a BT Infinity package (option 2). I'm now totally confused. I know we have an FTTC enabled exchange but neither BT (via the web) or IDNet via 3 sources can confirm that my line is FTTC ready.

FTTC via BT would solve a potential bandwidth allowance issue I'm going to have from now on but I'll be damned if I'm moving away from IDNet.

Oh go on. Someone's got to be first. 

[zappaDPJ]

I'm sure the same thing was said when they invented the guillotine 

[Rik]

Not to mention the electric chair...

[zappaDPJ]

I thought the guillotine analogy more apt Rik. Afterall, both the guillotine and BT are rather adept at servering a perfectly good connection 

[Rik]

While the chair may not make one.

[johnny5]

I thought the guillotine analogy more apt Rik. Afterall, both the guillotine and BT are rather adept at servering a perfectly good connection 

Thats worth a sid james! 

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[Simon]

That reminds me, when's the new series of The Apprentice? 

[colonelsun]

I don't get BT. They're late in understanding the potential of the web and appeared to think everyone in the country would be satisfied with dial up, broadband then arrives, or their version of it, and again they seem to think the public will put up with anything and now super fast broadband is on the horizon for some and their business plan appears to be replicating Virgin Medias' footprint for a quick profit and upsetting every other potential customer in the UK by limiting the spread of this product to those who already have multiple broadband choices.

I'm not sure but isn't a business supposed to make a profit once in a while....i cannot see the point of excluding potential customers, lots of them, that's no way of ensuring a revenue stream now that landline rental isn't their main earner.

[dujas]

Your comments don't really make much sense as BT Openreach generated the 2nd highest operating profits of the BT Group, for the first six months of 2009. The group's current issue is with the continued losses made by BT Global Services and the pension deficit.

I imagine FTTC roll-out is largely influenced by where BT Retail/Wholesale can best maximise a return from it.

[Rik]

Which, of course, it shouldn't be as a result of the separation of OR from the rest of the business. Well done, Ofcom. 

[dujas]

I think it's partly unavoidable because they have overlapping interests.

BT Retail the ISP and phone company must be BT Wholesale's biggest customer, so what is best for one member of the group is also helping boost the profits of another. It wouldn't surprise me if they were targeting VM cable customers, now they are allowed by Ofcom to offer more competitively priced broadband, phone and TV bundles, combined with matching (on paper) broadband speeds via FTTC.

[Rik]

I tend to agree, but I don't think that's what Ofcom intended to happen, for all that.

[dujas]

Perhaps BT needs to train its FTTC install engineers better... 

This is a report from a customer and not something that was recorded so on here not the A&A status pages. It is however totally unacceptable...

It seems our favourite telco are not playing fair, or at least one engineer is not...

Turned up at customer to install FTTC, and refused to!

He insisted that "only BT Retail and Carphone Warehouse were capable of doing FTTC".
And went on to "take ISP name to report to his manager".

He refused to install saying that as the customer "has no homehub then he can't continue the install".

Our customer reports "After I insisted - strongly - that he was wrong about the need for a homehub he tried to blame the whole thing on AAISP who, apparently, were lying to me...", "Oh, and the last time the engineer left he had also gone to 'phone his manager' but merely f..ed off with his van" and "He said he'd have to pass the job 'back to BT retail sales'"

I rather suspect some sort of audio recording device will be deployed for the return visit.

Oh, to add to the fun, the end users line has been configured somehow in the exchange in such a way that it has sync but PPP links are dropped a few seconds after they start. So his ADSL no longer works!

Source

[Rik]

What a stupid way to behave, but totally believable, unfortunately. BT Retail can't possibly be involved in this.

[OllB]

Broadband option     Estimated connection speed    When you can get it 

BT Total Broadband      0.256Mb download             Now



At least i found that i can get a general idea of my line status without having to run the bt speed test but it also makes me feel that someone somewhere at BT is mocking me.

[Technical Ben]

What a stupid way to behave, but totally believable, unfortunately. BT Retail can't possibly be involved in this.

Oh, but I would put money on the new "fibreoptic broadband" being the new "unlimited broadband". In the same way that unlimited is not, I think the fibre will not be either!
Think of it this way. All they need to do is put one big advert up like this...

Super Fast Fibre Optic Broadband*!

*For thouse who cannot get FTTC, you get the next best connection**
** For those who cannot get ASDL2+ you get the next best connection***
***For those who cannot get ASDL you get the next best connection****
****For those who cannot get Dialup, a BTpigeonHub will be installed...

Hmmm. Think I could copyright that and sell it to BT!? 

[Simon]

 

[Sebby]