BT Makes it Easier to Migrate Away from Sub Loop Unbundled Broadband ISPs

BTOpenreach, which provides UK ISPs with equal access to BT’s local and national telecoms and internet infrastructure, has moved to “improve and enhance the end user experience” by allowing shared and fully unbundled (LLU) broadband providers (e.g. TalkTalk, Sky Broadband, O2 UK etc.) to submit orders to migrate customers away from rivals on Sub-Loop Unbundling (SLU) services.

Sub-Loop Unbundling allows ISPs, such as Rutland Telecom (Gigaclear) in rural areas, to build and control their own street cabinets right next door to one of BT’s own. This helps smaller providers to bring faster and more advanced broadband services to areas that BT might have otherwise ignored.

The process is broadly similar to a normal migration between unbundled providers, although the nature of SLU kit means that it requires “separate engineering activities” to complete properly. As a result the customer could face a “longer period of downtime” on the day of migration and other problems, such as faulty tie pairs causing an additional delay to the work, could extend that period even further until resolved.

The involvement of BT engineers also ramps up the cost to £127.61 +vat for migrating from an SLU to LLU provider. The new process will become effective from 13th April 2012.