Don't split Openreach, says BT, and we'll splash BEELLIONS on broadband and 4G

I would give them "regulatory certainty"

I would tell them that they are going to spend those billions - because if they don't, then they'll have no chance of surviving the competition that I will unleash on them.

Monopoly generates complacency. BT is obviously the fat Jabba who, being pseudo-threatened, waves a pudgy hand and mumbles something of a promise before turning his attention back to his bikini-clad slave girl.

Time to put a lightsaber through that.

Same old story

Perhaps if Openreach had already made the investment, rather than waiting for public subsidies, they might have a case.

BT should be told to put up or shut up. Once they've finished rolling out fibre to every home, then we can talk about regulatory certainty.

The fact that they are so desperate to hold on to what ought to be a profit-neutral, arms length subsidiary speaks volumes.

That realisation that you live in a third world country

Slow internet is becoming a national embarrassment.

Don't compound the earlier mistake

BT should never have been allowed to take over EE. It has given them an unfair advantage in the telecoms and networking arena...

I too would support splitting Openreach away - that way I might have some hope of faster broadband with my lowly "Exchange Only" (discounting the cabinet / pillar that we have in the road!) line...

Put it in writing then

In the form of a legally binding contract, with clearly stated timescales, measurable achievements, conditional stage payments and a combination of early finish bonuses with stiff penalty clauses for failures. I'm sure the government could manage that. Oh ..... wait a minute.

As one who was in the middle of the last fiasco, please bear a thought for those internal BT HellDesk workers who pick up the phone and go 'Hello, am I allowed to talk to you today?'.

Government Agency

BT is a government agency that pretends to be private company. It is up to the government to run it and order it to do what is required. No excuses.

So BT say they will do what they should already be doing if they don't have to split up their cartel?

Funny how they suddenly seem to be able to promise to make Openreach fix a problem, something BT currently say they are unable to do. My "superfast" broadband with an estimated 30Mb only gives me 7Mb because Openreach say the line is "good enough" and BT can't make them fix the iffy copper.

As said above, it does at least make the trees grow, albeit in this quantity the Amazon rain forest will have enough fertiliser for a millennium or two.

The fact that they have that much money to splash....

...tells you all you need to know.

Something needs to change - shit service from the monopoly

I have had crap with my FTTC connection since the middle of March. Speed only dropped by 20% so it isn't faulty enough to even mention it to openreach via the ISP. The kind of 'fuck you, take what you are given' service only a monopoly can provide.

Turns out to be almost certainly due to a crap firmware update on ECI cabinets to support G.INP which they are currently backing out of due to problems it caused. It still leaves connections worse than they were before the update.

Its all about money

Openreach is the most profitable part of BT, the profits from it will be well over the 6 billion by 2020.

Split Openreach off and apply utility rules to them, limit the profit they can make and have all the extra invested in infrastructure and research.

BT can then goes its own way, charge what it likes the same as Sky, TalkTalk etc etc....

That would be the best option for the customer as we would get the best possible network and true choice from providers.

"genuinely, really promises to roll out more fibre-to-the-premises in “new housing developments, high streets and business parks”

My last flat was in a 10 years old development with 100+ flats 1/4 mile from the Exchange in SE London zone 4 - it didn't have fibre.

My current flat is in a 2 year old development with 100+ flats in SE London zone 3 - it doesn't have fibre.

If BT can't be bothered rolling out fibre to large developments in in London imagine how it is for the rural areas.

This is the company lined up to purchase Channel 4 - the chump needs to be stopped - but big business has them all in it's pocket.

I 'm all for BT being split up,but not sure how their offer is genuine,as the promise ignores those already on slow speeds & 40mb\sec is 'slow' by 'superfast' comparison.

The majority,who have fibre to 'cabinet' are ignored in this 'offer',so how it equates to 95% enjoying 'superfast',appears to be a 'LIE'.

As a long time BT user, what pisses me off, is the raising of prices when they are already making £4 BILLION profit in one year,when so-called 'regulators' actually 'regulate' NOTHING AT ALL.

In the face of the above, BT would still be pumping up the price increases,enough is enough.

If the government abandoned smart meters, that money would have been better spent on 'superfast broadband,as well as splitting up BT.

I live in NZ. If you look at Chorus which seperated from Telecom NZ around 2007 and owns the lines/exchanges, they pretty much stopped all investment in the network. Their wholesale access pricing is regulated and so nothing gets invested into the network unless the government gives them grants. End of story.

So the UK government can either

- regulate pricing and threaten separation as a means to encourage self reinvestment

- separate them and the taxpayers can pay for all investment.