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Wales Consultations
Towards e-Wales - a consultation on exploiting the
power of ICT in Wales
The Welsh Assembly Government has launched a consultation on
exploiting the power of ICT in Wales. The key aim of the
consultation is to get your views on how we get the best out of
information and communication technology (ICT) to achieve a better
Wales.
The consultation is the first significant step in reviewing
and refreshing the WAG approach to ICT in Wales since the launch of
the ICT strategic framework for Wales, Cymru Ar-lein, in
2001.
Closes – 31 October 2006
What benefits have you had from broadband?
During the second half of 2006 the Broadband Wales Observatory
will be writing up Case Studies on organisations and people who
have benefited from using broadband.
If you as an individual or as part of an organisation have achieved
tangible benefits from using Broadband and would like to feature in
a Case Study that will be published on the Observatory's Web site,
then please eMail Dr James B. Waddell, Project Manager at BBWO at
waddelljb@ecommerce.ac.uk explaining briefly your
story.
Blue Skies Research - The Future of Broadband in Wales
One of the key product deliverables of the Broadband Wales
Observatory is the production of a Blue Skies report. The two
principle research areas that make up this report are a literature
review and a Delphi Study. Both studies look at the future of
broadband technologies and the likely relationship between
technological progress in this area and the content, services and
applications that will evolve over the next 10 years.
This report presents the findings of a literature review which
was conducted to gain an understanding of the current predictions
relating to the future of broadband content, applications, services
and infrastructure and their likely impact on consumer, business
and the public sector over the next 10 years. A selection of twelve
"Blue Skies" documents were reviewed which were limited to UK and
European publications, published over the last six years.
Delphi Study (available soon)
This report will present the findings of a Delphi study which
is essentially an exercise that facilitates group communication,
focusing upon a complex problem so that over a series of
iterations, a group consensus can be achieved about a future
direction. This study will report on the thoughts of a re-structure
from a diverse range of roles and organisations in the private,
public, voluntary and higher education sectors.
Blue Skies Report (available
soon)
The final Blue Skies report will incorporate the results of
the literature review and the Delphi study and will be used to help
inform Welsh Assembly Government e-policies outlining future
infrastructure requirements in Wales over the next 10 years. It
will also help form a blueprint to ensure that Wales stays at the
forefront of technology and its exploitati.
BT21CN Timescales
BT have announced their timescales for customer upgrades to
its 21st Century Network in Cardiff.
Cardiff will be the first part of the BT network to be
upgraded, starting in November 2006 and completing in the summer of
2007.
By the end of this project BT will have upgraded all 350,000
customer lines. 90,000 of these lines also support broadband and
ISDN2 and ISDN30 services.
Customers will not have to do anything for their lines to be
upgraded. Telephone numbers will not change and, as all work will
be carried out in BT's telephone exchanges, no roads will have to
be dug up to deliver the upgrade.
Dates for ADSL enablement of exchanges
As of publishing this newsletter 33 of the 35 exchanges in
Wales have been enabled, the two most recently being Paincastle and
Rhiw which were both upgraded on the 22nd September
2006.
The two remaining exchanges of Llawhaden and Rhos are
currently considered to be unviable and awaiting a service
date.
Further details of when your exchange is due to be enabled can
be found at
ADSL Max from RIBS Exchanges
All of the exchanges enabled by the RIBS project will be able
to deliver ADSL Max services and be included in any future national
upgrade programmes such as ADSL 2
"Still can't get Broadband?"
In addition, you may want to ask your neighbours to see if
they are facing the same not-spot issues, and encourage them to
register their details onto the brokerage site, as the more
registrations that are collected in one area, the better the
business case and justification for doing the work.
Wales is the only country in the
world that is addressing not-spots at the same time as enabling its
unviable exchanges.
Database of Broadband Initiatives
The Observatory's website now has a database of Broadband
Initiatives or Projects for Wales and the Rest of the World.
Around 20 Welsh projects have been submitted so far and we would
welcome the addition of more projects from Wales and
elsewhere. The database offers a powerful search tool for the
project records as well as a Submit Project option.
www.bbwo.org.uk/initiatives
Wales ADSL stats
Total exchanges in Wales: 439
ADSL enabled exchanges: 437
SDSL enabled exchanges: 18
ADSL Max enabled exchanges: 425
The remaining exchanges will be installed with ADSL and ADSL
Max.
Country Market Reports
Country Reports providing a market overview of data and
telecommunications services are available now for:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Denmark
- France
- Ireland
- Netherlands
- Sweden
Feature: High Altitude
Platforms (HAPs)
What are HAPs?
High Altitude Platforms are a potential platform for high
speed broadband, investigated by a project called CAPANINA.
York University has co-ordinated the project, through the York
Electronics Centre, which looked at the potential uses of balloons
or small aircraft situated in the stratosphere at around 20km
altitude in providing large numbers of broadband connections.
About CAPANINA
Capanina was a 3 year project costing 5.5million euros and was
part funded by the European Union.
The project began in November 2003 and consisted of a
combination of partners from industry and academic
institutions.
York HAP Week
The final CAPANINA Exhibition will be taking place at the York
HAP Week
A number of demonstrations and exhibits will also be shown at
different points during the week.
Information highlights:
- Steerable mm-wave antenna technology (including smart antennas,
mechatronic solutions, and RF design)
- Broadband trials from aerial platforms
- Broadband applications from HAPs
- HAP radio regulatory environment
- Business models for broadband communications services from
HAPs
- Hardware demonstration
- HAP broadband roadmaps
Full programme and enrolment information are available
at:
What is HAPCOS?
HAPCOS is the European Cost Action (COST 297) for High
Altitude Platforms for Communications and Other Services.
COST is one of the longest-running instruments supporting
co-operation among scientists and researchers across Europe, and
works with the European Social Fund. COST's main objective is
to stimulate new, innovative and interdisciplinary scientific
networks in Europe. COST activities (Actions) are carried out by
research teams to strengthen the foundations for building
scientific excellence in Europe.
The main objective of HAPCOS is: "To increase knowledge and
understanding of the use of High Altitude Platforms (HAPs) for
delivery of communications and other services, by exploring,
researching and developing new methods, analyses, techniques and
strategies for developers, service providers, system integrators
and regulators."
Public Consultation on Content Online in the Single
Market
Ways to stimulate the growth of a true EU single market for
online digital content such as films, music and games.
The creation of an open and competitive single market for
online content is one of the key aims of the EU's i2010 initiative
– a European Information Society for growth and jobs.
Closes – 13 October 2006
Review of the Regulatory Framework for electronic
communication networks and services
The European Commission adopted the Communication on the
Review of the EU Regulatory Framework for electronic communication
networks and services. The Communication is complemented by a Staff
Working Document which outlines in greater detail possible changes
to the regulatory framework, and by an Impact Assessment. These
documents launch a formal public consultation.
The European Commission will hold a one-day public workshop on
Tuesday 10 October 2006 in Brussels. The Workshop will provide an
opportunity for interested parties and stakeholders to express
their views on the
4 consultation documents published by the Commission in
July. The Workshop will be broadcast live on the Internet
here.
Closes – 27 October 2006
3G Rollout Obligations
Ofcom is seeking to measure the extent to which 3G services
are available to the UK population. Such services should, under
normal circumstances, be able to provide a range of applications
such as voice, text, video and multimedia services for outdoor
reception with speeds up to 384kbps. Coverage to meet this
obligation is expected to be primarily urban/suburban rather than
rural.
Closes – 20 October 2006
Broadband migrations: enabling consumer
choice
Ofcom is proposing to introduce new regulation, in the form of
a new General Condition, which will require broadband providers to
make sure that customers can obtain broadband service and switch
suppliers with minimal disruption.
Ofcom's proposals include steps to:
- facilitate consumer requests for broadband migrations in a
manner that is fair and reasonable
- ensure that all broadband migrations are carried out within a
reasonable period; and
- ensure that all broadband migrations are carried out with
minimal loss of service for the customer.
The proposed new regulation will also require broadband
service providers to provide MACs to customers on request and to
comply with a specific process for doing so.
Closes – 5 October 2006
Regulatory Round-up
_________________________________
BBC iPlayer – Public Value Test
BBC's proposals to launch new on-demand services, including
the new BBC iPlayer, have been subjected to a Public Value Test
starting on 18 September 2006 and lasting for four weeks.
The aim of BBC iPlayer is to incorporate all the existing BBC
players such as the Radio Player under a consistent user interface
and brand.
Additional services the BBC would like to launch on demand
include:
- Seven
day TV catch-up over the internet
-
Simulcast TV over the internet
-
Non-time limited audio downloads over the internet
- Seven
day TV catch-up over cable
The Public Value Test will include:
- Market
Impact Assessment
- Public
Value Assessment
Unbundling Update
_________________________________
OTA Update for July 2006
The Office of the Telecommunications Adjudicator announced on
4 August 2006 that the number of unbundled lines in the UK exceeded
673,000. This is up from 580,000 in June 2006.
The OTA stated: "I am pleased we have reached 673,000 lines on
the current tactical platforms and processes. The Key to success is
now getting the Right First Time KPI back on track for BAU and Bulk
Migration. OTA will continue to focus in particular on: Business as
Usual Line Delivery; Backhaul & Co-mingling Delivery Quality
and Strategic Automation (EMP) Plans & Delivery."
Previous announcements had suggested a potential to unbundle
between two and three million lines by the end of 2006.
The Telecommunications Adjudicator aims to facilitate swift
implementation of the processes necessary to enable competitors to
gain access to BT's local loop on an equivalent basis to that
enjoyed by BT's own businesses.
UK Unbundling League
|
Provider
|
Enabled
|
Source
|
|
C&W
|
611
|
|
|
Sky
|
447
|
|
|
Tiscali
|
248
|
|
|
Orange
|
218
|
|
|
O2 (Be)
|
192
|
|
|
Homechoice
|
145
|
|
|
Edge
|
21
|
|
|
Pipex
|
21
|
|
|
Node4
|
4
|
|
Wales Unbundling League
|
Provider
|
Enabled
|
Source
|
|
C&W
|
9
|
|
|
Tiscali
|
4
|
|
Unbundling Targets and Pending
AOL
Target: 300 by first half of 2006
Cable and Wireless (Bulldog)
Target: 800 by 30/09/2006
The Carphone Warehouse (Talk Talk)
Pending: 1,018 (30 in Wales)
by 31/08/2006
Orange
Unbundled exchanges 28
Pending: 87 (12 in Wales) by 30/09/2006
O2 (Be)
Pending: 756 by 31/12/2007
Pipex
Target: 100 by 31/12/2006
Market Data Analysis
_________________________________
AOL is still expected to sell their UK
internet access division, and have recently announced the sale of
their German division to Telecom Italia. The company, owned
by Time Warner, has 2.3million members in the UK including
1.1million broadband subscribers.
http://www.timewarner.com/
Pipex has announced the acquisitions of
telecoms provider Toucan and Bulldog's broadband customers,
bringing the total number of Pipex broadband customers over
570,000.
The purchase of Toucan also brings mobile to Pipex's product
portfolio. This enables Pipex to offer triple play
(broadband, voice and mobile).
Pipex also announced it will be buying wholesale broadband
using Cable & Wireless' unbundled local loop (LLU) network
along with using its own unbundled exchanges.
Peter Dubens, Chairman of the Pipex Communications plc, said,
"Cable & Wireless is a good addition to our supplier mix and
going forward this relationship will add breadth to the choice of
services that we are able to offer to all of our customers."
Data sources:
Useful Links
_________________________________
Broadband Wales Programme
Visit the Broadband Wales Programme website for information on
the benefits that broadband can bring for you
www.wales.gov.uk/broadbandBroadband for Life
Key Documents
Other News and Events
RIBS "Blackspots" Registration Scheme
If you still can't get broadband after you have been informed
that your telephone exchange has been enabled, please register your
details at
www.bbwo.org.uk/blackspots
.
Details of when your exchange is due to be enabled can be
found at
The scheme is operated by BBWO on behalf of the Welsh Assembly
Government.
Please note every attempt is made to ensure figures published
in this newsletter are the most up to date and accurate figures
publicly available at time of going to press, however, exact
figures may vary.
Thank you for reading the
Broadband Bulletin from the Broadband Wales
Observatory (BBWO). This newsletter is published once a
month.
Researched by:
Edited by:
Rhys Gravell
Published by:
Broadband Wales
Observatory
eCommerce Innovation Centre
Cardiff University
Cardiff Business Technology Centre
Senghenydd Road
Cardiff CF24 4AY
Tel: 029 2064 7030
The Broadband Wales Observatory is managed by
the
eCommerce Innovation Centre
at Cardiff University on behalf of eWales at the Welsh
Assembly Government.