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KC offers full fibre 350 Mbps service
Friday 01 June 2012 16:20:11 by Andrew Ferguson

Virgin Media has its 120 Mbps service, Openreach has its 330 Mbps service, and now KC has gone one step further with its 350 Mbps service. KC is rolling out fibre based services to some 15,000 households in the Hull and East Yorkshire area, with 7,500 properties already passed by the network. Take-up for the fibre services is also good at 20%.

The new 350 Mbps full fibre (FTTP) service is 3.5 times faster than the fastest fibre service KC previously offered, and while its £99 per month subscription (no connection fee) is not cheap, the service will prove ideal for households or businesses with lots of internet connected devices.

For those wondering what the installation looks like, KC has published a video of one of its engineers installing the full fibre service.

Whether the service is the fastest fibre service in the UK depends on the criteria, as Hyperoptic and IFNL with their full fibre deployments offer a 1 Gbps service. At last the UK is starting to look a little more like the PR material we see emerging from other countries, and remember the PR material will always give the best possible picture.

[ Topic: Broadband | 46 comments | link to this item ]

Comments

Posted by Apilar 12 months ago
750GB usage
20Mb/s upload :(
Posted by otester 12 months ago
^ To be fair that's more than you'd probably get away with on VM (they enforce their AUP).
Posted by themanstan 12 months ago
I'd say 750GB is a fair limit for residential BB. anymore and you should be n=looking for a niche package.
Posted by omnius 12 months ago
so how long before bt go to 370?
Posted by otester 12 months ago
@themanstan

I find it rather amusing that even 3UK offer more (1TB), C&W DSL packages tend to go up to 5TB though.
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
@omnius, technically acheiveable of course but currently pointless

I think your average household would struggle to use 100Mbps concurrent never mind 300, 350 or 370

There's just no point getting into that speed race, not yet anyway :)
Posted by tthom 12 months ago
Can see it now BT announce FTTC 351Meg lol
Posted by cyberdoyle 12 months ago
Great investment, fibre is the futureproof way to get connected, because it can only go faster and better. If you stick with a phone line you will hit a limit and go no further. Great stuff KC.
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
Maybe maybe not cyberdoyle, g.fast is on the horizon with up to 1Gbps over copper at around 200m so.... there's life in the old dog yet :)
Posted by themanstan 12 months ago
CD, this is a limited roll-out less than 10% of KC, much like BT is only doing limited FTTP, which looks like being ~10% too. Majority of KC is on FTTC, which connects via your bane... copper.

@otester

Agreed they offer better limits, but large limits on slow lines is easy as few customers have the discipline to set themselves up to make best use of. This would not be the case with a 350 service.
Posted by gsituffers1 12 months ago
to otester -nameless customer - using 50mbps service at that time july2011 1737gb in 1 month
1537gb in june and 1386gb month before wasnt happy with aup policy being enforced -but does show what you can use on vm
Posted by adriandaz 12 months ago
There will be greatly expanded coverage by 2015. The product also has unmetered usage midnight-8am.
Posted by otester 12 months ago
@themanstan

Then they could just do tiered usage and charge accordingly, like KC does, shame that KC doesn't offer higher packages though.

@gsituffers1

VM only enforces the AUP in areas they consider congested (can't be bothered to upgrade), I would not want to take the risk of taking out a 12 month contract to find I'm in a congested area, some people got letters for as little as 130GB.
Posted by otester 12 months ago
Edit: Hmm, seems KC does unlimited business packages for £50.
Posted by otester 12 months ago
Edit2: This also applies to their fiber products as well, with unlimited Business packages up to 100Mbps.
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
"There will be greatly expanded coverage by 2015"

Within the KC region only of course ;)
Posted by Dushyant 12 months ago
VM got rid of their letter writing policy a couple months ago when they updated their policy. You don't have to keep downloads out the 9am-9pm window anymore.
Posted by Ultraman1966 12 months ago
Wow, I was in KC area back in early 2010 and their broadband was very flaky; this news makes them look top of the line!
Posted by andrew (Favicon staff member) 12 months ago
More than one commentators posts have been removed due to inappropriate language and personal attacks.
Posted by undecidedadrian 12 months ago
Actually thinking about this story I wonder if KC are putting the investment in due to them running a complete monopoly in th east ridings area.

They will get the ROI as nobody has a choice who to go to.

My in laws have been trying to get BT to come and install them a line in Beverley and they have been told by BT they can have a line to the nearest exchange for £50k which would be a fairly long line.
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
I'm sure that is certainly a factor undecidedadrian and probably why there is no installation fee, they can reap the gains for as long as it takes to get it back. Although I'm sure Ofcom were looking at opening up that area a few years back.
Posted by adriandaz 12 months ago
I still don't see why people think that there is a monopoly in the KC licenced area, when infact they are regulated by the same rules as BT as they have SMP here. They have wholesale just like BT.
Posted by creakycopperline 12 months ago
BT cronie site, proven right again. andrew
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
@adriandaz they do indeed, I was talking more about PIA myself which I don't believe they do at present
Posted by craigbrass 12 months ago
undecidedadrian makes the point I have been saying for years. Deploying FTTP just about stacks up if the installer gets to keep 100% of ongoing revenue (ie is the sole 'ISP' on the network). From what I have seen of KC, they are doing it the right way too. FTTC in the major areas and FTTP outside where FTTC doesn't work. No sign of BT doing that...
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
Where doesn't FTTC work craig (not rural, we know what the problems are there)? Remember KCOM's footprint is a little smaller

Posted by pcoventry76 12 months ago
WHy would BT care what KC do? I don't think anyone can get BT anyway. Isn't that the whole point of KC? to be where BT dont want to be or cant be?

It's like Bristol being virgin media only ( god help it)

and also just wanted to say..

@otester

I've done 3 times that on virgin and never been kicked off. if you stick within the STM 996GB every 24 hours is achievable.
Posted by Spectre_01 12 months ago
Its not that BT don't want to be in Hull, its that they don't have a licence to operate there. There history is basically that licences for each area were bought by various telecom companies which were later absorbed by the post office (GPO), hull was the acception to that and when the GPO bacame BT, hull was outside of that and remains so.
Posted by Spectre_01 12 months ago
*exception & became - sorry just woken up from a nap... yawn.
Posted by otester 12 months ago
@pcoventry76

Like I said before, it depends on local congestion, but it seems after checking the AUP that they have now removed it which is probably due to the new traffic management policies, which suck balls.
Posted by undecidedadrian 12 months ago
KC was owned and operated by Hull Council until it was floated off.

It covers Hull, Beverley and a fair chunk of the East ridings of Yorkshire.

They didn't even have BT payphones the local payphones are operated by KC. You can tell that they are KC as they are old style Jubliee payphones painted white.
Posted by craigbrass 12 months ago
@GMAN99: I have had a few conversations with one of their directors and somebody at the top of wholesale there. They are doing FTTP where they know FTTC would not work (ie the outskirts where customers are good distances from cabinets).

@Spectre_01: BT essentially manage the KC network thanks to an outsource agreement. From what I hear, this was gained because BT were talking about entering the area. BT now make more £ per customer than they do wholesaling their services in other areas of the country so won't be deploying there any time soon.
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
@craig, I meant for BT (where FTTC doesn't work), you can't really compare the two to be honest. KCOM can certainly do what you are proposing as is such a small area compared to the rest of the UK
Posted by ElBobbo 12 months ago
So, FTTP is viable in Hull because it's "such a small area"? That doesn't make sense. Surely it costs the same to run fibre there as many cities in the rest of the UK.
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
Compared to the rest of the UK I mean, you can't adopt a model that works in a small area to a much larger area.

Plus are KCOM wholesaling their FTTP product with a zero install cost?
Posted by otester 12 months ago
@ElBobbo

They have a monopoly which isn't restricted like BT's is, that's why it's viable.
Posted by ElBobbo 12 months ago
So FTTP is viable, taking into consideration the cost to dig up roads, lay new fibre, etc? Their lowest fibre package is only £35 a month.
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
^ In a city where you are the sole infrastructure provider where you don't have to wholesale that product yes it probably is. We don't know if KCOM have to wholesale that product or not yet, if not they can make their money back quicker so it is viable yes.

If they do have to wholesale it I doubt very much you will be able to buy the same product with no installation fee from another ISP like KCOM are offering. It costs something for KCOM to install.
Posted by adriandaz 12 months ago
It's not just rural areas which are getting FTTP, most of the city installations are also going to be FTTP making use of existing ducting and telegraph poles. Very little digging. Most of Hull and East Yorkshire will have FTTx by 2015 :)
Posted by adriandaz 12 months ago
http://tinyurl.com/c7zozgf
Posted by GMAN99 12 months ago
adriandaz do you know if they have to offer that product as wholesale or not?
Posted by adriandaz 12 months ago
Not sure, but as SMP for the licensed area I would have thought the same rules as BT apply?
Posted by themanstan 12 months ago
yes they have SMP and wholesale, but the wholesale prices are much higher as they don't have the economies of scale that BT enjoy.
Posted by ElBobbo 12 months ago
Well, roll on fibre. Can't come soon enough.
Posted by Guest_Again 11 months ago
Me needs fibre too... Arrrghh!

>:-{|
Posted by eviemai2011 7 months ago
Just reading a few comments and why is it you cant adopt a small model to work in the larger area's? All the larger areas are still split between their relevant exchanges making them small areas!! The BT model is very costly compared to the KCOM model and that is why BT will be watching on how Kingston Upon Hull proceed the coming few years. 15000 homes passed and 3000+ connected i think someone mentioned. As for BT managing the network the company is BTMSL (managed services) and they maintain the network as KCOM's contractor.
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