[rhyds]

Originally Posted by pip08456

The above is interesting but me being me has always said that an ISP should only provide a service, which means a modem!

Anything else a business (or a residential customer) needs should be at their own expense and they support themselves.

You do not state how option 2 would have lost you overall control.

As regards 3, I'm sorry but if 2 had effected any control over the network, I'd've gone for 3.

While I agree that most ISP routers are utter pants, certainly not all domestic customers (and some businesses) would have the knowledge to buy a decent router, and it would be a support nightmare.

(Of course that wouldn't apply to any power user/business with a proper IT staff.)

Option 2 was to use a shared connection managed by the building owners. That would proven problematic with regards to our VPNs and would have meant ceeding control of our internet connection over to the building owners' IT department. The reason we'd kept out ADSL for so long was because we used the VPN features of the Netgear routers that were on the line to connect between our sites.

Also, our site is a residential activity centre which regularly works weekends, the building IT staff IIRC did not.

The problem with 3 is that while a LL is of course uncontested, your still talking £x00 a month for sub 10mbit download. For a sub 40 user office that's a fair chunk of our budget.

---------- Post added at 14:52 ---------- Previous post was at 14:46 ----------

Originally Posted by pip08456

No they didn't go through BT, they went through Openreach.

Openreach supply BT Wholesale and any other provider because that is what they have to do by law.

Had successive governments not stripped away investment etc before privatisation this country would be in a much better state.

With no competition there was no impetus for investment. Whatever the GPO deemed you deserved was what you got. Did you want a better/different service? Not their problem.

Privatisation and competition in the telecoms sector was the best thing that ever happened to it. I can get a business ADSL connection (line rental, BB and next business day fault repair) for £20+VAT. Could the same be said if BT were still the only supplier in town?