First UK Telephone Exchanges Named for BT Fibre on Demand Broadband

BT’s new FTTP-on-Demand (FTTPoD) service, which will eventually make its premium “ultra-fast” 330Mbps (30Mbps uploads) capable fibre optic broadband ISP technology available across all FTTC supporting lines in the United Kingdom, has begun its phased roll-out and the first supporting telephone exchanges are now known.

The service is currently in a state of Early Market Deployment, which is similar to a full commercial launch but it comes without the same guaranteed service levels (the full launch usually follows a little later). In other words ISPs can now begin to take the product but with some caveats.

One of those caveats is that FTTPoD, or FoD if you prefer, isn’t yet available from every telephone exchange in the country and like most new telecoms services it needs to be deployed through a phased roll-out. Until yesterday we only knew of the 8 trial exchanges but now Thinkbroadband has managed to unearth BTOpenreach’s initial batch of supporting locations (below).

According to several ISPs, the phased roll-out is expected to take another year or so until the service becomes available at all FTTC locations (i.e. 66% of the UK by spring 2014). Home owners that can already order FTTC will then be able to take FTTPoD too but, unlike a native FTTP service, the on-demand solution will effectively require you to pay all of the “last mile” style installation costs.

The monthly rental price (£38 +vat – before additional ISP costs are applied) of FTTPoD is effectively the same as FTTP but it also comes with a fixed £500 one-off installation fee, which is in addition to a distance-based construction charge that will vary depending on how far away your home or business is from BT’s nearest NGA Aggregation Node (these are usually situated in the ground and close to your local street cabinet).

BTOpenreach estimates that more than half of premises (55%) will incur a distance based charge of between £200 – £1000 and “virtually all other premises” will face a charge of between £1,400 – £3,500. A very small percentage of orders might also incur an Excess Construction Charge (ECC) that could cost up to several thousand pounds (here). Ouch.

List of Initial FTTPoD Telephone Exchanges

Basingstoke
Blackfriars
Bonvilston
Bristol South
Cardiff
Culverhouse
Edinburgh Waverley
Garston
High Wycombe
Holmer Green
Hook
Keynsham
Manchester Central
Penn (Buckinghamshire)
Peterston Super-Ely
Princes Risborough
Redruth
Roath
St Agnes
Turgis Green Chineham
Watford
Leamington Spa
Kenilworth
Southam
Nottingham Longbox
Geding
Ramsbottom
Tottington
Irlan
Oldham
Saddleworth
Tunbridge Wells
Paddock Wood
Tonbridge
Malone (Belfast),
Brighton Hove
Brighton Withdeam
Maidenhead
Littlewick Green
Bromsgrove
Droitwich
Hillside (Hereford & Worcester)
Falmouth
Penryn

Clearly FTTPoD is not a product intended for your average budget conscious home owner; although both business and domestic focused ISPs alike have informed ISPreview.co.uk of an interest in the service. But some providers are worried that customers might effectively end up paying for the cost of a full Leased Line service, albeit without receiving the same guaranteed levels of service quality. The proof is in the pudding and right now that pudding is very expensive.