[Ignitionnet]

Originally Posted by Verizon

:.....thanks for that, most interesting, but do we believe him?

It has been announced, it is happening.

BT would love access to VM's network, being as it's the only cable tv network in the country of size. But I do not believe for one second BT are genuine about opening up theirs.

BT aren't asking for access to the active cable network just the ducting so the rest of this section is moot.

1 - The Government will force BT to open up its poles to competitors so that they can sling fibre from them. Or, more likely, BT slings the fibre and allows access to competitors.

No - the agreement is BT to allow access to its' poles and ducts. BT are already obliged to provide access to any next generation access network on a bitstream basis.

The problem is, this is a short term measure. This technology will not cope with 100, 200, 1000mb speeds that new services of the future will require. There is also an inherent unfairness on BT in that it has to use its resources to facilitate competitors, ie it still has to send a bloke round to unlock the telephone exchange when Mr Orange turns up to install his equipment. So, that leaves:

Yes - however 50% of FTTC investment will be reused in FTTH/P. There have been for years products to allow BT's competitors to install their own equipment in cabinets and it has been done. It's called subloop unbundling and has been around as long as local loop unbundling.

2 - Openreach (which is now conveniently separated from BT to some extent) becomes state controlled.

Not going to happen, and in any event nothing convenient about it. Most of the pension liabilities are with Openreach and it's a bureaucratic pain in the backside to get things done with but necessary.

You forgot option 3.

3 - BT, Virgn Media and others are obliged to offer non-discriminatory access to their ducts and poles at regulated cost+ rates. BT to continue to be obliged to offer bit stream access to their NGA / Next Generation Access network. Virgin Media to offer a wholesale broadband product.

Which is what appears to be the most likely course of events. This does depend in no small part however on which party ends up in power. If Labour win they may decide to give up any attempt at not being socialist and decide to do it themselves with more money they don't have. Option 3 is what the Tories have mooted.

---------- Post added at 13:17 ---------- Previous post was at 13:15 ----------

Originally Posted by Verizon

....and they would stay so. But the part of it built with public money would become state controlled again.

In a age of "new" Labour privatising left (excuse the pun) right and centre. Could the unthinkable happen and a new Conservative government (should they win) nationalise some assets such as Openreach?

Conservatives are about smaller government and free markets, not enlarging government through nationalisation and interfering in free markets. To do so would be a bizarre and most un-conservative act.

EDIT: Plus, simply, who pays? We have a lot more pressing things to do with the tax payer's money than fit fibre to Farmer Giles' barn.