ASK4 COO Says Yorkshire Digital Region Network Needs Credible BT Alternative

Q5. The House of Lords Select Committee Inquiry recommended that one solution to improving the situation could be to foster the development of a truly national fibre optic (FTTP) infrastructure.

But in order to make this economically viable the lords suggested that the “last mile” of connectivity development might need to be paid for by home owners. This could, in some cases, costs thousands of pounds and would be difficult for many to afford. Do you agree with this as a solution and, if not, how would you fix the national telecoms infrastructure?

ANSWER:

A national fibre optic network is absolutely needed for us to be able to meet the needs of the future. Local fibre hubs make a lot of sense, with the “last mile” being met through a combination of FTTP and wireless solutions dependent upon geography.

The homeowner paying is certainly a solution to the problem, but not a viable one. The costs will be far too excessive for the majority of people.

A combination of public and private funding is needed in order to meet the needs of the rollout. However, there needs to be a much greater understanding within the public sector of the possible benefits to UK PLC of such a major infrastructure build, Smart-cities alone could dramatically reduce the costs for local authorities.

Q6. Ofcom recently released a new obligations code that requires all of the UK’s largest ISPs to send Internet Piracy notification letters to customers whom are suspected to have become engaged in unlawful P2P file sharing activity. Repeat offenders could then face account disconnection, other service limitations (slower speeds) or might even be sued by Rights Holders.

Understandably the code has faced some criticism. Many complain that it puts an unnecessary burden upon ISPs, while consumers must also pay to appeal the allegations and only on limited grounds. Likewise the code only targets the account owner, which in this day and age of shared home/office networks could risk penalising the wrong individual(s). What are your thoughts?

ANSWER:

Whilst copyright infringement cannot be condoned, we believe the code in its current form is unfair to those that are accused of illegal downloading: far from being innocent until proven guilty, the accused are put into a position that makes it extremely difficult for them to defend their innocence.

Instead of charging people to appeal, courts could ensure that appropriate action is taken against frivolous appeals.

It is also unknown to what extent people will be able to defend themselves. The onus is on the accused to prove that they have not committed copyright infringement, or that they have taken appropriate steps to ensure others haven’t. The ability to do either of these for the vast majority of Internet users is well out of their skill sets, and the likely costs hugely disproportionate.

Q7. Ten of the UK’s biggest ISPs recently signed up to a new ‘Open Internet Code of Practice’, which seeks to ensure “the provision of full and open internet access” and to prevent ISPs abusing Traffic Management practices to “degrade the services of a competitor”. What are your thoughts on the code?

ANSWER:

The Internet is built upon the principles of openness and whilst there is likely to be more changes, the code is a very positive step forward in ensuring that continues.

Traffic management is unfortunately a necessary evil for traditional service providers. However an open traffic management system allows consumers to make well informed choice when deciding which supplier to use.

Q8. What does the future hold for Ask4?

ANSWER:

Growth and innovation!

We’re continuing to see increased demand for our services in our core student accommodation market and we are working closely with our clients to ensure that we offer services that help them entice customers and drive efficiency in their operations.

We’re going to continue to make the most of the network that we’ve built in order to drive the growth in our business services arm that we have seen over the last year.

We will continue to support projects such as Digital Region and Digital Teesdale and hope to see these reach maturity over the coming year.

END.

ISPreview.co.uk would like to thank Ross Bray for taking time out of his work to give opinions on the UK telecoms market and its related broadband / internet issues.