an electrical engineer told me that from August 1st, . Kingston Communications are gonna lose the monopoly on the phone lines and internet. Has anyone heard anything about that?
Can other providers use KCs infrastructure the same way BT have to unbundle theirs? I appreciate you might not know that but if anyone else knows I'd be interested.
I'm sure PLT will know more than me, but as far as I'm aware their lines have to be made available to other providers, just as BT do elsewhere. I understand that the only reason that they don't, is that people in Hull are so used to just having KC, that it's not worth anyone going to the expense involved in dragging customers from them. Even in the areas where we have the option of KC and BT they put little effort in, I switched from KC to BT, but they were so **** I switched back.
As far as I understood it - the KC dominance was due to the type of cabling in the city - the copper cables we used wasn't compatible with elsewhere. A lot of that cabling has now become fibre-optic, however, so I wonder if new superfast providers may be more keen to enter the city. It may also tie in with the KCom rebranding, as apparently that was to do with gaining national appeal.
That's exactly right. Ofcom insist that unbundling of the lines must be allowed and the amount that the owners of the lines (so basically just BT or KCOM) can charge for wholesale use is regulated. The only thing stopping third party providers doing in Hull exactly what they do elsewhere is a lack of desire from them to do so.
There have been companies looking to unbundle exchanges but it's never come to anything. So far all the other carriers take managed services from KCOM rather than investing in their own network equipment in KCOM exchanges, and renting the copper. BT are starting to offer some metro dark fibre from 2017 which may put pressure on KCOM to do the same eventually.
Hey it's nice being able to talk normally with you! So any idea what puts other providers off then? I'm not surprised about Lambos experiences of BT, not sure how they manage to be so bad. I've had Sky for donkeys and have had barely any issues with them. Any of the rare times I've had a problem, they've honestly been awesome. I always assumed if the infrastructures in place, all the ISP has to do is put their kit in the exchange, then plug people in as they sign up. Is that not the case? Or is there a local loyalty/acceptance/refusal to change in regards to KC?
