New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

https://www.ft.com/content/5bbf83b8-...0-5a84f3c1b26f
Sky News article: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/othe...?ocid=msedgntp

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

This is just VM trying to get Liberty Networks off the ground again.

from this time last year:

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.ph...e-sibling.html

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

That's actually from this time not one but two years ago! But your point remains valid.

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

Lots of talk about "upgrading" but when am I actually going to get fibre to my house.

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

If you’re already in a HFC area, anytime in the next 10 - 15 years as long as the money doesn’t run out.

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

Great, so I have to hope I last that long to even see it :erm:

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

It's supposed to be in the next 6 years - by 2028

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.ph...ull-fibre.html

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

I’m happy to be wrong. It’s 2022 and the actual management team to deliver this has only just been assembled. They are trialling it now in 3 areas. It will be several months before it is ramped up to full scale, I doubt very much they can overbuild all of the HFC in just over 5 years.

There’s a misconception that the overbuild will be quick and relatively inexpensive because of the existing VM duct network. If the existing HFC fibre & copper cables weren’t in-situ that may be more the case but the HFC & FTTP must coexist. There are lots of places where the duct are full, so new ducts will be required. Some existing cabinets can be converted for dual use but mostly new cabinets will be required.

I’m probably being pessimistic with 10yrs, but just over 5yrs? Not a chance.

VM will still invest in DOCSIS, which will deliver 10G over HFC, so if you have to make decisions on where to spend money. They will continue to spend on FTTP network expansion as that is new business and customer expansion - that’s a given. But if we’re 2-3 years into Mustang and It’s proving to be more expensive than envisaged and spend decisions need to be made. You’ll scale back Mustang (not stop it) and push on with NetEx as that is giving you a better return on your money.

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

As an outsider, I must admit I struggle to see the benefit of running two networks in parallel unless you don't want to take the short-term hit of moving customers over to the new network. Double costs, double confusion, surely? Unless you envisage different ownership structures for the two networks.

But I speak as someone outside the sector and this is VM O2's area of expertise and not mine!

Re: New VM O2 joint venture to reach 7m homes and to wholesale access to competitors
 

You have to, there’s no other choice. You can’t give your customers an either/ or ultimatum.

Give them a better option and they will move, when enough have moved announce the shutdown of the HFC ( I’ve been advised 2045 total and absolute nationally, so obviously it will start area by area many years before that) and the remainder will have to move.