Digital Region Project may seek commercial operator to rescue it

[AgentDRL]

Yes, I thought to myself that there would be at least a 6 month wait. I'm still under contract with Virgin cable broadband for another 7 months, so hopefully they will be taking orders by then (assuming my cabinet is upgraded also).

[gremlin_mick]

Just got this from BT:

We had a technical problem yesterday whilst using a new email system. The issue led to a number of people receiving inaccurate information about fibre.

Please ignore any emails you have received from Openreach in the past 24 hours and accept our apologies for the confusion this might have caused.

Regards,

Openreach Marketing

[Bonjon]

Have to ask chaps/chapettes...

Just looked on the SamKnows site and Wadsley Bridge which was supposed to be 'Taking Orders' doesn't have BT FTTC yet...

https://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange/SLWB

 

How long does it take usually any ideas?

 

Unfortunately being on my rather lovely 70mb Origin connection will come to a screaming halt back to the stoneage in Walkley come August time so anything that can make BT get a shift on will be a blessing

 

 

Wadsley has been like that for ages (maybe over a yr).

[Paddy]

I had a feeling it was too good to be true.

 

I think those such as me who are on the Attercliffe & Sheffield exchanges will have the pleasure of old copper based broadband for a long time yet!

 

See this link also:

 

http://www.thinkbroadband.com/news/6516-finger-trouble-at-openreach-leads-to-incorrect-emails.html

 

---------- Post added 30-06-2014 at 18:15 ----------

 

So it is going to cost even more money to shut the network down:

 

http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2014/06/south-yorkshire-uk-digital-region-network-cost-70m-shutdown.html

 

http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/business/digital-region-to-repay-27m-to-eu-europe-1-6698640

 

How there hasn't been a public enquiry into this massive waste of public money I'll never know!

 

---------- Post added 30-06-2014 at 18:25 ----------

 

And even more bad news:

 

http://recombu.com/digital/news/bt-and-virgin-media-unable-to-rescue-sheffield-from-superfast-broadband-gap

Edited June 25, 2014 by Paddy

[AlexAtkin]

Sorry but that last one I call bull****.

 

BT have had no issues rolling out in Digital Region areas elsewhere in Sheffield, had they not done so then Digital Region might actually have recovered with a little more advertising. It was BT rolling out Infinity that was the final nail in the coffin.

 

I also find it funny how someone at Ask4 can blame Digital Region for this, when they too are competing with BT in the City Centre, as are Virgin Media in some areas. But no, its all Digital Regions fault, yet Ask4 could also expand their own network in the City Centre - funny they do not mention that.

 

BT had zero plans to roll anything out in South Yorkshire before Digital Region. If anything, their plans accelerated once Digital Region finally started. They took advantage of the poor management/advertising of Digital Region to snag its profitable customers away.

 

Now they leave the unprofitable (residential wise) areas to rot. That blame lays squarely with BT, but then you can't really blame them, that is what happens with a private business - they are in it for the money. Blame the government for privatising them in the first place.

 

As for Virgin Media, they aren't even a consideration. My end of the street was going to be cabled until they took over, then they stopped half way. They have no interest in expanding their network.

Edited June 30, 2014 by AlexAtkin

[Paddy]

We've still not heard anything more about that extra £10 million pounds. I wonder if will hear something after the closedown date?

[ShefStealth]

I was already talking about the councils/DR having to repay money back to the EU back in March (page 5 of this thread). It appears that perhaps the £10million promised from central government to the DR project is evidently to pay back the EU loan, with each of the 4 councils having to find £1million out of their own budget and the £10million from central government being repaid back over time. They're in crisis management mode now, they just want the network shut ASAP to stop hemoraging money.

 

It costs Virgin a crazy amount of money to expand their network per mile of fibre laid and this is the main reason why they don't want to expand their network. That being said, Digital Region has fibre already laid in a big chunk of our area (Yorkshire being the biggest county, we are large populated portion of this) and this would be prime to pick up at a knock-down price now, especially seen as the councils need to suddenly recoup £14 million of it's costs in order to pay back the EU.

 

I'm surprised that the council's don't refer BT to Ofcom and the competition commission what with the antics that they've pulled over this one. A lot of their anti-competative motivation and roadblocks to this project are easily provable and any money won back from BT is again cash that they can repay the EU with.

[Paddy]

There is no way the Government would hand over money to the South Yorkshire councils just for it to be handed back to the EU. Time will tell what if anything will become of this extra cash.

[Dardandec]

Time will tell what if anything will become of this extra cash.

 

Like keeping it afloat for ten months at a million per month while customers are migrated to other networks. That's where that's gone.

[Paddy]

Like keeping it afloat for ten months at a million per month while customers are migrated to other networks. That's where that's gone.

 

I don't even think it's been handed out by the Government yet and you can bet that part of the handout deal will be that it's not spent on keeping DR going.