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Originally Posted by Mark B
ntl built their own network. It is privately owned and maintained.
BT's network, as with the gas and electric networks, was provided free for them when they became private companies. Thus, to ensure competetion, they are FORCED to allow other companies to use it.
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So please explain how the network was provided free when all those £ÃÆ ’‚£Ãà¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚£ flowed from Sid and private funds to the government to buy shares in BT, BG and all the Electricity companies when they went public. The government sold the network it built into private hands, those private owners now maintain the BT network. The same argument would state that the Government owns the BA fleet because it used to be a State airline.
Competition in the Gas and Electricity market came after privatisation, at the time they were sold as local monopolies, no other provider could use the network. I'm not sure of the timing on the BT network, but the 4 digit predial numbers have been around a long time, as was Mercury long distance prior to that (press the blue button), so (I think) the network was open under government control, privatisation did not change that.
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Originally Posted by Mark B
BT would have you believe they do all this out of their own concern for a free market, rubbish, they are forced to do so by the regulator.
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The same regulator OFCOM that NTL and TW fall under.
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Originally Posted by Mark B
Incidentally, you CAN choose to have broadband via AOL on ntl's network, so the original statement isn't even true!
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True but this is hardly a breadth of choice.
http://twcny.com/internet/ offers three reputable companies. If NTL (and TW) offered say Buldog, Pipex and Demon (perhaps even Tesco and Virgin whos VISPs they run) over their cable, then I would say the statment isn't true.