Openreach Launch New UK FTTP Premium Connection Service

On the 10th September 2020 Openreach (BT) will make their new ‘Premium Connection’ service available to broadband ISPs that sell their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) service, which costs £40 +vat more than the standard engineer install and in turn gives consumers a wider choice of installation activities.

According to the operator’s limited public briefing, the launch prices for Premium Connection “have been set with reference to information gathered on the average mix of installation activities during a previous technical trial.” Just for comparison, a Standard Connection (engineer installation) normally costs £98.48 +vat for their consumer FTTP broadband tiers, while the new premium option costs £138.48 +vat.

We recall writing about the new premium service trial some time ago and, if memory serves, it brings a number of benefits, on top of the standard connection. The main focus seems to be on additional activities that are designed to optimise connectivity within the end customer premises (i.e. your home).

The additional activities may include things like router repositioning, WiFi analysis, more extensive testing of the live network (using more devices to demonstrate the working service etc.), possibly an allowance for more complicated installations and a few other things. Most consumers won’t need these features but it’s a nice option to have.

In the past we’ve tended not to see additional installation options being openly promoted by the biggest broadband providers (they’d sooner try to get as close to a free setup as possible), but they may still be available upon request and smaller providers sometimes offer them as options during the order process.