BT Plans Move To IP Telephony, Starting Next Year

pure_equanimity writes "The BBC have published an article saying that BT are planning to migrate from a PSTN to an IP network, a move to cost 3bn. They say that broadband will become ubiquitous, with customers having the ability to plug any device in to get access. They also say that current cheap broadband products will more than likely not be viable in five years time. They plan to start rolling out in 2006, and cover the vast majority of customers by 2009."

Re:So what numbers will we use

[ZombieEngineer]

When you go to IPv6, it makes it nigh impossible for sales people to cold call your unlisted IP address.

ZombieEngineer

Re:rims?

[natd]

Even worse. Lookup Milton Keynes.

UK is temporatily unavailable.

[Big Nothing]

Phone service to the UK is temporatily unavailable due to the Sasser.Q virus. Please try again later.

Re:rims?

[Brie and gherkins]

WTFAYBOA?

Good God man, what the blazes?

I have phone, I plug in wall, I call my mamma. No thankyou multiplexor pargainer, not today, Goodbye!

Re:Charge by the MB

[Brie and gherkins]

I personally enjoy spending incalcuable amounts of money for telephony. I have a 200+ special, but only on the same network, 25p peak unless I call my grandmother after texting twice in which case it's 17p per minute, unless I'm in the lounge when there's a leisure discount. Coupled with a supersaver from Virgin, Wannabeatelco, provided that I prefix 17 digits to the number then I can get additional discounts. Do you remember walking to the red phonebox and waiting, striking up a conversation with others in the queue, 5p pieces in hand? Simple and tangible is good

Re:Who the f*ck is BT? ;-)

[Brie and gherkins]

Yes old chum. Try taking The Times for a few weeks, you'll soon understand what the Empire is about.

Re:Powersource?

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't worry. The government will restore your conversation from their backups as soon as power is restored :/

Re:PSTN?

[PowerBert]

Rubbish!

Back in my day PSTN was "Packet Switched Telephone Network". It was called that because it used packet switching to route information. Whoever heard of Public switching?

Public switching:

1. An outdated communications protocol used before IP on the original internet in 1500BC. It was slow by todays standards, had no means of error checking and could not gaurentee delivery. It's still used today, but only at childrens parties where it is more often referred to as Chinese whispers.

2. A method for routing humans around the world. It is used mostly at airports and train stations to route people to their destination via the most efficient link. Two people may travel to the same destination, but be switched through different routes. As a result people may arrive in a different order. Unfortunately the protocol has no method for reordering people, which is why the Airtours REP protocol is often used in conjunction with this network.

Cheap?

[FrostedWheat]

They also say that current cheap broadband products will more than likely not be viable in five years time

BT have cheap broadband products? Yikes, they've kept that well hidden!

Re:Will this be going to IPV6 or IPV4?

[Viol8]

"how cool will it be to have links "

About as cool as the sun. Thats just what you'd need , loads of phone calls from people who "just want to ring for a laugh" or people who click accidentaly or people who phone up to tell you your page sucks whereas if they had to actually dial the number they might not bother. Still , it'll probably happen. Every crap idea ends up in browsers eventually.

Re:Wow - That's unexpected

[Anonymous Coward]

It's obviously data corruption on your ultra-cheap broadband ;)

Re:So...

[AllUsernamesAreGone]

This is BT. Control and Overcharge are their middle names. Actually their full name is Bastard Control Crumbling Infrastructure Bad Support Incompetent Overcharge Telecom. They shorten it to BT so they can fit it on the trucks and use the cover name "British Telecom".

They'd have no problems at all in controlling or overcharging for IPT, especially with the Toothless Wonder regulator (whose best threats seem to be things like "Oh, go on, please drop your prices, pretty please with a picture of Tony on the top"... although anything with a picture of President Blair on it is probably a serious threat now I think about it..)

roads

[smallguy78]

BT will spend around 3bn on the project - more than the annual spend on Britain's main roads

By about 2.9bn judging from our motorways