BT cuts price of access to its infrastructure

British Telecom has bowed to pressure from Ofcom, the UK’s telecoms regulator, and cut the prices that it would charge rivals for access to its broadband network infrastructure.

The former telecoms monopoly last year agreed to grant rival telecoms operators access to its infrastructure – including roadside poles and underground spine ducts – to help create a superfast fiber broadband network around the UK. Openreach, the BT subsidiary that maintains much of the company’s fixed-line infrastructure, in January proposed a tariff of £1.16 per meter to allow rival operators to run their own cables through its ducts, and £21 per telegraph pole to install their lines. But this sparked protestations from BT’s rivals, and a letter of complaint about the proposed pricing was sent to Ed Vaizey, communications minister, by internet service providers including Fujitsu, Virgin Media and TalkTalk. Following trials to ascertain the cost of renting the infrastructure, BT on Oct 7 dropped its proposed access prices and also altered the way in which it would charge for infrastructure rental, allowing its rivals to “pick and mix” the services that they buy. The move, which BT said would offer its rivals “greater flexibility and choice”, will cut the proposed prices to as little as 44p per meter for duct access.