Oftel publishes broadband market review – 28 April 2003

Ref: 23/03
Date: 28 April 2003

BT and Kingston will continue to have to provide operators with wholesale broadband access under the new EC communications directives, Oftel has proposed today.

Oftel has published its market review of the wholesale broadband market as part of its work to implement the new EC Directives on electronic communications that come into force on 25 July.

David Edmonds, Director General of Telecommunications, said today:

"Oftel’s work has helped to develop the UK’s growing broadband market, leading to increasing take up of broadband services by consumers and small businesses.

"Oftel’s review of the wholesale broadband market has found that BT and Kingston in the Hull area still have significant power in this market.

"Oftel proposes to continue under the new EC communications directives with a number of obligations on BT and Kingston to ensure other operators can compete with them to provide broadband services.

"Measures to promote competition include requiring BT and Kingston to provide access to their broadband networks on reasonable request, not to discriminate against other operators, and provide accounting separation between their wholesale and retail broadband services.

"These measures will support the continued growth in broadband take up by ensuring that consumers have access to a wide range of broadband services at some of the cheapest prices in Europe."

Note to Editors

1. Review of the wholesale broadband access market ia available from Oftel’s website at http://www.oftel.gov.uk/publications/eu_directives/2003/eu_dsl/dsl.pdf. Hard copies are available to the media from Oftel's Press Office, telephone 020 7634 8991, and to the public from Oftel's Research and Information Unit, telephone 020 7634 8761.

2. Oftel has already published market reviews on narrowband wholesale services, retail markets, fixed geographic call termination, wholesale international services, unmetered Internet call termination, leased lines and the mobile call origination markets.