Ofcom under fire after decision not to break up BT
MPs and digital campaigners have been angered by the decision by broadcasting regulator Ofcom not to order BT to sell its Openreach broadband division.
Ofcom came to the conclusion after a year-long review of the market, which many industry watchers had expected to lead to the break-up of the company’s broadband business from its main telecoms division.
Instead, it recommended that BT changes the structure of BT Openreach, which owns and maintains the UK’s network of broadband cables. Ofcom said Openreach should have an independent board and greater control of its finances. It will also face new performance rules from next year and from next week, it will be required to make its ducts and poles available to competitors.
Some 121 MPs from across the political spectrum had previously called for BT’s broadband monopoly to be dismantled, amid concerns that 5.7 million people across the UK are still unable to receive the minimum broadband speeds stipulated by Ofcom.
Former Conservative party chairman Grant Shapps told the Daily Telegraph: "Ofcom's continuing reluctance to act condemns hundreds of thousands of people to the slow lane of internet connections, meaning it takes longer to access information, download a movie or run a business from home.
"By now Ofcom should appreciate that high speed broadband is the fourth utility, which no modern household should be without.
"You have to wonder how many times BT Openreach has to fail the public before the regulator acts. The idea of one more chance is being stretched to its limit while ordinary families and British businesses continue to suffer through poor or no super-fast broadband.”
Ofcom said its recommendations were part of “the biggest shake-up of telecoms in a decade” and would ensure that the market was “delivering the best possible services for people and businesses across the UK”.
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