Ofcom has proposed a new range of wholesale prices that
BT
Openreach can charge providers for access to its telecoms services.
The communications watchdog said that the proposals are a continuation of its
consultation into how telecoms services are provided to the home.
Ofcom said that the new price ranges, which include £85 to £91 for a fully
unbundled line and £15.60 to £16.20 for a shared unbundled line, are designed to
increase competition in the provision of voice and broadband services.
Rob Bamforth, principal analyst at
Quocirca,
suggested that it was "about time" for Ofcom to take this action, but that take
up might not be significant.
"Now is not a positive time for companies thinking about investing in new
infrastructure, what with financial market turmoil and the recession. But,
thinking longer term about the needs of the country, the reach of high-speed
open networks will be increasingly important," he said.
"So it remains vital to keep up the encouragement of competition, to grow
reach as well as speed and capacity, even as times harden. I am a big believer
in open infrastructure."
The
Ofcom
consultation document is available now, and the organisation expects to put
its results into action by April next year.
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