Tag: 10mbps

10Mbps Internet speeds for everyone by 2020

April 1, 2018 Industry News, Ofcom No Comments

The UK Government is introducing a Universal Service Obligation (USO) for broadband as part of its commitment in the UK Digital Strategy (March 2017) to ensure that the UK has world-class digital connectivity and inclusion.

The new USO is a UK-wide measure, intended to fill the gap left by the UK Government’s existing broadband roll-out programs, to deliver broadband connections to the hardest to reach premises in the UK. The USO is intended to provide a legal right to request a broadband connection of at least 10 Mbps download speed, up to a reasonable cost threshold.

The Digital Economy Act 2017 gives the UK Government the power to implement the USO via secondary legislation. The Act also allows for the Government to review the USO and to increase the minimum speed. There was broad cross-party and consumer support for the introduction of a statutory USO for broadband in general, but there were mixed views from industry stakeholders as to how universal access to broadband should be delivered.

How will it be implemented?

The UK Government was considering two options for the delivery of its aim for universal access to broadband connections with at least 10 Mbps download speeds by 2020:

  • a regulatory approach implemented by secondary legislation; and
  • a proposal by BT to deliver the service voluntarily.

The Government announced in December 2017 that it would adopt the regulatory approach. Under this framework, the USO will be demand-led. This means that consumers will have a right to request a connection. A universal service provider (most likely BT) will be obliged to build all reasonable requests up to cost threshold (£3400 proposed). The USO is expected to be funded by a cost-sharing industry fund.

Jocks’ USO block shock: BT’s 10Mbps proposals risk ‘rural monopoly’

August 25, 2017 Broadband, Business, Leased Lines, Ofcom No Comments

Scottish ministers fear ‘hugely negative outcome’

 

Recommendations by BT to fork out £600m to give omnipresent velocities of 10Mbps could harm rivalry by settling in its restraining infrastructure position, the Scottish government has cautioned.

BT made the offer to give the Universal Service Obligation by 2022 a month ago, which would render the administration’s intends to give clients a lawful appropriate to 10Mbps excess.

In any case, Scotland’s Rural Economy Secretary, Fergus Ewing, said the recommendations chance undermining rivalry by “obviously reasoning that it won’t be financially suitable for any supplier other than BT to convey in white ranges”.

“What has risen therefore hazards digging in, expanding, BT’s restraining infrastructure position in country regions,” he said in a letter to Culture Secretary Karen Bradley.

“That would be a gigantically negative result and one that would serve to undermine and baffle the Scottish government’s advanced aspirations.”

Calum Kerr, previous SNP MP who has extensive experience with telecoms, stated: “The USO as of now misses the mark as far as speed, and dangers guaranteeing the advanced separation turns into an abyss, as opposed to being shut.

“I’ve had a worry from the begin that a USO could be excessively prohibitive a vehicle It’s administration attempting to tick a case to state it’s finished something for country.”

Kerr had beforehand approached the UK government to present a voucher conspire for the USO, as a methods for all the more successfully boosting country broadband speeds and moving the imposing business model far from BT.

Interestingly, previous computerized serve Ed Vaizey has said BT’s Openreach is the web supplier best put to convey the administration’s arrangement for a USO.

As per Ofcom, there are 1.4 million families in the UK that don’t get speeds over 10Mbps.

Karen Bradley had said the administration “warmly respects” BT’s offer and will now take a gander at whether this or an administrative approach works better for homes and organizations.

“Whichever of the two methodologies we run with at last, the main impetus behind our basic leadership will be ensuring we get the best arrangement for purchasers.”

Original Source: The Register