Free Broadband Access

This publication has been discontinued on November 23, 2011.

Introduction

Abstract

Overview

2006 has seen a wave of new broadband service offerings in the UK market, targeted at existing and new broadband consumers and heavily promoted as ' free' . Starting in March 2006 with new-entrant CarPhone Warehouse, with it' s radical promise of a ' free forever' service, it was rapidly followed by a range of high-profile announcements from Orange, BskyB, Vodafone and other new players, along with existing broadband providers such as NTL Telewest. Considered by some observers to be short-term marketing tactics, it is now apparent that more fundamental shifts in the market may be occurring as major players seek to retain existing fixed-voice and TV customers, increase ARPU by offering new services, and build new market share.

The UK consumer now has a bewildering array of broadband services on offer, but the true cost is not always easy to discern - requirements to take other ' bundled' services, longer contract periods and the inclusion of other value-add internet services serve to complicate the simple ' speed and download limits' buying decision.. But early take up has nonetheless taken some operators by surprise, leading to early industry concerns regarding provisioning delays and costly customer support.

Incumbent operator BT continues to play at the higher end of the market offering sophisticated and integrated services rather than joining the price battle of the new entrants. But it is nonetheless aiming for additional market positioning from wholesale rental of it' s broadband services to other operators.

With the UK market fiercely competitive - evidenced by the recent withdrawal of Cable & Wireless from the retail broadband sector - and with movement of players into new sectors still continuing, the longer-term sustainability of free and very low cost broadband offerings is far from clear.

Answers to key questions

• What is the true cost to the consumer?
• Bundled services - the future for UK consumers?
• Sustainable commercial offering or short-term tactic?
• Can ' free' broadband work outside the UK?

Profiles and Offerings

Assessment & commentary covering:

• BskyB
• BT
• CarPhone Warehouse / AOL Europe
• Hutchison Mobile
• Kingston Communications
• NTL Telewest / Virgin
• Orange
• PlusNet
• Tiscali
• Vodafone

Table of Contents

1. UK broadband market

• 1.1 Retail broadband - definitions
• 1.2 Evolution of broadband in the UK
  • overview
• 1.3 Retail broadband services
  • current landscape
• 1.4 Positioning of leading broadband providers
  • Telco, Mobile, TV, ISP
• 1.5 Main trends in service bundling
  • Voice, TV, Internet, Mobile

2. UK free broadband, in context

• 2.1 Key commercial, market and regulatory drivers
• 2.2 Common service features
• 2.3 Introduction timelines

3. Service deployments

• 3.1 Competition & unbundling driving the market?
  • New entrants vs. traditional providers
• 3.2 Leading players & services outline Supplementary operator and service details
• 3.3 Services take-up
  • Early reported results and market feedback
• 3.4 Operator strategies

4. Service details

• 4.1 Basic package costs
• 4.2 Contract lengths & termination constraints
• 4.3 Other service/bundling requirements
• 4.4 Speeds, contention ratios & download limits
• 4.5 Connection & provisioning additional costs
• 4.6 Value-added services (email, spam filtering, webspace...)
• 4.7 Customer support: details and costs

5. Key questions & analysis

• 5.1 Specific attributes of UK market driving free broadband
• 5.2 True cost of services to the consumer
• 5.3 Profit centre or enabler for other services
• 5.4 Implications on the UK communications market
  • pricing, incumbent players
• 5.5 Major convergence shift or short-term trend
• 5.6 Impact on ARPU

6. Conclusions

• 6.1 Sustainability, risks & uncertainties
• 6.2 Replication of the model outside of the UK

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