Posted by Admin on June 13, 2010 – 2:56 pm
The new coalition Governement has published a policy document which outlines a new plan to rollout superfast broadband accross the UK.
However the Labour Governement’s plan to impose a 50p tax on every phone line had been scrapped and instead part of the TV licence fee will be used. The coalition hopes that the private sector, BT and other telecommunication companies will also help with funding. The Tories had always been against the 50p tax although the Liberal Democrats generally supported it. It was thought that most broadband companies were unsure about the tax plan as they feared that it would discourage the private sector from investing in the broadband scheme.
Broadcaster Jon Snow reportedly said at a Westminster Media Forum recently that he beleives that the TV licence is a regressive tax which can’t survive. He said ‘ Everyone thinks it is a tax so why is it not called a tax.’
So in effect everyone will still be paying for the next generation of super fast broadband but hopefully at no extra cost.
Posted by Admin on January 31, 2010 – 6:00 pm
BT’s new fibre optic broadband service for businesses was launched last week. It offers up to 40mbps download speeds and a special ‘fast lane’ which gives right of way to businesses at busy times.
Prices start at £30 per month with a 24 month contract and upload speeds of up to 2 Mbps. While up to 10Mbps speeds and a 24 month contract will cost £45 per month.
12 month contracts are more expensive. £35 for BT Business Total Broadband Fibre and £50 for the advanced package.
Each package will include 500 minutes of BT’s Openzone Wi-Fi network, 24 hour technical support, 50MB of web space and 10 e-mail addresses.
BT expects the 10 Mbps upload speeds to be very attractive to small businesses wishing to send bigger files. BT’s biggest competitor is Virgin Media who believe that their upspeeds are faster than BT’s but BT of course dispute this.
BT plans to make fibre optic broadband ( FTTC ) available to 4 million businesses and homes by the end of 2010 and available to 10 million businesses and homes by mid-2012.
Posted by Admin on August 18, 2009 – 1:42 pm
Millions of BT broadband customers will be offerered broadband speeds of up to 20Mbs at no extra cost. The cheapest BT broadband deal is currently £7.78 per month for the first 3 months.
Customers in enabled areas currently enjoying download speeds of up to 8 Mbps will find their broadbands speeds increasing to up to 20 Mbps. Initially this will affect about 10 million people ( 549 exchanges) which is 40 % of UK homes and businesses. This will increase to 55 % in March 2010. Upload speeds will also increase to 1 Mb.
The BT Broadband Accelerator ( speed booster pack worth £15) will also be free to BT broadband customers who can order it free online. ( postage £1.20). The accelerator, also known as the I-plate, includes a small plate that can be inserted into the main telephone socket to reduce the impact of electrical interference. This may also increase broadband speeds by 1.5Mb. The plate isolates a redundant wire in the socket which can slow speeds. Although this cannot be guaranteed the plate can help to stabalise broadband lines.
New customers to Bt Total Broadband in an enabled exchange area will be eligible for speeds of up to 20 Mbps for £7.78 per month. Existing customers will be asked to sign a new contract.
