All of UK on broadband 'by 2005'

BendiBus

BT has said every community in the UK can have broadband net access by 2005.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3276621.stm

Urban Weigl

"BT said it decided to make the commitment to the 2,300 exchanges, as well as the 100% coverage target after reviewing its long-term broadband strategy and costs."

eth0_

I think BT have just a *little* more money to invest in bband tho
Northern Ireland is currently at over 80% coverage, between NTL cable and BT dsl.

spongebob

150 out of 1100 exchanges by End September 2004 = 14%
Approx 1.6 Million population with BB coverage day/night = 40%

Day/Night referes to the number of persons in an ADSL enabled area during their normal work day and ALSO when at home, it is in a set of figures supplied by Eircom to the government early this year. Note that BT have committed to 100% of exchanges by 2005. They have then further committed to 100% coverage OVER AND beyond that 100% exchange coverage.

Eircom have been known to provision an exchange and to then fail the line test for between 30% and 50% of lines on that exchange, that skewed heavily towards the home owner. Then they claim coverage for all the population in that exchange area.

The technically superior BT RADSL works up to 1km further out from their exchanges than the Irish 'version' . BT have committed themsleves to using a mixture of Wireless and VSAT technologies to ensure that households and businesses that are more than 5 (or is it 5.5) km from the local exchange will also have a BB service option. Eircom simply give the finger if you fail the test, Eircom refuse to use the acres of Spectrum they have to provide a wireless alternative if your Copper line fails.

The good news is the Eircom will have their testing database working by 2005 and that it will consistently fail anybody about whose line there is any doubt at all. Eircom are 100% committed to delivering on their promise not to promise anything to anybody.

M

eth0_

Originally posted by Muck

The technically superior BT RADSL works up to 1km further out from their exchanges than the Irish 'version' .

It's great alright, I live in a little village (so ickle it doesn't even have a pub) over 3 miles from the nearest town and I can get 1mb dsl if I so choose.

spongebob

Bad news It seems that the smallest exchanges in the UK , 600 of them with 300 customers or less will be excluded from this expansion of the DSL service.

See the story Here . 300 customers in Ireland would average about 350 lines or so. There is some flummery about trigger levels still being applicable as well . I get the impression that BT and the UK government are inching towards a deal on subsidies for Universal BB availability.

Eircoms trigger level is 2,000 lines although I know of a few exchanges with fewer than 2000 lines that have been upgraded .

M

Fallschirmjager

Muck,

just a couple of Q's

does the 2000 lines equate to 2000 household or have they some business crap in there as well i.e. are households good enough or do thye want business customers as well?

if you live in a place with over 2000 people who can you ask to move things along?

any suggestions...received with unending gratitute...

viking

If you live in a place with over 2000 people who can you ask to move things along?

I would love someone to provide me with the answer to that...

According to Eircom's marketing department (who decide these things and to whom I had to explain what a trigger level was) it is necessary to have "circa 100" expressions of interest for ADSL in order for them to "consider" the exchange for upgrade. Whether "circa 100" means 70 or 130 is anybody's guess but when I asked for a more accurate number I was told "circa 100" again...

I don't think they have provided anybody with an offical trigger level for their exchange as yet.

My advice for smaller exchanges - get in touch with local wireless broadband companies and see what their plans are.

viking

spongebob

Originally posted by Fallschirmjager

Does the 2000 lines equate to 2000 household or have they some business crap in there as well i.e. are households good enough or do thye want business customers as well?

Eircom never mentioned Households in any press release I saw. Ireland has 1.4 Million Households and 1.7 Million Lines including BR ISDN ones. A perfect National distribution is 1.2 lines per household or so. Conversely a 2000 line exchange covers 1,650 households or so .....crudely averaged nationally.

If you live in a place with over 2000 people who can you ask to move things along?

PEOPLE do not matter to Eircom , look at their customer service .

The state has 4 Million People in 1.4 Million Households. The Average Household therefore has 2.86 Inhabitants and 1.2 Lines . A town of 2,000 would therefore have 700 Households on average. Not enough Households I fear.

Speaking about Galway where I live , towns that have been upgraded tend to have 4,000 people or higher or a sufficency of Planning Permissions in the pipeline to get them there. These include Athenry Loughrea Tuam and Ballinasloe. Oranmore is being done because of the raft of planning permissions granted in the past 2 years which guarantee it 4,000 people(ish) by end 2004 or so.

Nowhere else in Galway has been done, not Barna with 2,500 odd people albeit quite rural, Oughterard and Clifden with 2,000 in the town and fringe or Gort with c.2,000 as well. In Mayo its the same, Ballina Castlebar and Westport are done and nowhere else is being done or will be done.

Write to phil.nolan@eircom.ie and ask him why the high threshold and when this atttitude will change, I can't answer for Phil but I expect that he will pass it onto a PR Bunny who will waffle endlessly about some 'plan' or other.

M

Fallschirmjager

I dont know whether to laugh or cry.....but as usual all the details..thanks a mill