Lack Of Agreement Hurts Unbundled Broadband

摘要

The number of UK consumers using "unbundled" broadband services has taken off quickly, but growth is being held back by the failure of internet service providers (ISPs) to agree on how customers should be allowed to switch to other providers. This is slowing down the rate at which new services such as Sky Broadband and Carphone Warehouse can connect newly unbundled customers to their broadband products. Peter Black, the Telecommunications Adjudicator, noted in his latest monthly report that there continued to be a high level of complaints from people who were seeking to switch broadband providers. The complaints were particularly high among those who were already using one of the 1.3 million unbundled lines installed in the UK. Black is now co-ordinating a cross-industry plan in conjunction with regulator Ofcom and BT's Openreach division "to allow inter-product migrations to take place seamlessly". A key industry workshop on the topic, hosted by the Office of the Telecommunications Adjudicator (OTA), was scheduled to take place on Thursday, after New Media Markets had gone to press, to review progress and agree some immediate steps.