Telewest prices too high

[andymt]

Personally I think they are too high, well, some of them are.
The internet especially.
They charge 17.99 for the 256k service. In my opinion there shouldn't even bee a 256k service as it is so slow it isn't really clasiffied as broadband.
The 1mb service is a tad dear as well, considering BT do 2mb for the same price.
Also bearing in mind that for the 256k and 1mb services there is only an upstream speed of 128k, these packages are seriously expensive.
I have the 1mb plan and it is not worth the price.

They should double all the speeds!
Wat do u ppl think?

[ian@huth]

ISPs should market products that their infrastructure can sustain at a price that enables them to give an acceptable service level, maintain the infrastructure, improve it and generate a profit for the company. If those products and prices give you a service that you are happy with at a price you are willing to pay then subscribe to them, if not, look elsewhere.

[Rob]

There are many factors to consider when looking at boradband pricing. The download and upload speeds, contention ratios, capping, installation fees, equipment supplied and future maintenance of, availability of customer service and charges (premium phone lines etc), mailboxes, web space., do you need a phone line (as with ADSL - if so you should allow something towards that cost?). The list goes on.

The original post though indicates the problem for most ISPs, on the face of it only the headline download speed and price are seen by the average punter. The direct comparison mad between BT and Telewest probably fails when you start taking into account all those factors.

The latest offers from UKonline: 512k for £9.99 but only if you are connected to LLU enabled exchange, could create problems for many ISPs, not only Telewest.

Competition works, as ian@huth says, each punter has a choice, they can go elsewhere, but each ISP has to look at their pricing model, make sure they can sustain their service for the price but try to keep competetive. Periodically the web is full of stories where punters are hacked off when service levels fall too far (oversubsription, inability to get installed / connected, etc), and this is usually down to the ISP not haveing any funds to invest, as they've become too cheap.

[Ignition]

256k speed is being doubled to 512k.

BT's 24.99 2Mbit is capped at 15GB a month, TW's 1Mbit is not.

[andymt]

I suppose you are right about the 1mb service, although the 256 is still expensive-it is capped at 750mb a day.


I understand and would much rather pay and receive a high quality of service!
Thanks guys.

[MalcUK2005]

As said above the 256k service will soon be doubled to 512k I beleif the new 512k service will have no cap just like the other services and for new customers that will be avaiable at £14.99 so £14.99 for a uncaped 512k service.

Originally Posted by Ignition

256k speed is being doubled to 512k.

BT's 24.99 2Mbit is capped at 15GB a month, TW's 1Mbit is not.

The 256k never really had a cap anyway. It was a guidance

[Saltank]

I think Telewest should narrow down services to the following:
1mb = £15
3mb = £25
6mb = £40

Paying anything else is ridiculous, look at the prices around the world and you will understand. In Canada 6mb costs $45 which is £20.

Originally Posted by Saltank

I think Telewest should narrow down services to the following:
1mb = £15
3mb = £25
6mb = £40

Paying anything else is ridiculous, look at the prices around the world and you will understand. In Canada 6mb costs $45 which is £20.

Its not competing with the world though. Its in the UK.

6mb will not be £40 since 4mb is £50

[andymt]

When they do introduce 6mb, all the speeds will b changed-

£14.99/£17.99= 512
£25 =2mb
£35=4mb
£50=6mb
Thats prob how it will work.
But not for very long, if they introduce something faster, in whch the lowest option could end up being 4mb!!
cause they have vsdl technology which means in theory they coukd have 100mbps connections.
Great time ahead, and im sticking with my 1mb telewest cable!!

[Saltank]

I certainly hope it will happen soon I want it!

Originally Posted by andymt

When they do introduce 6mb, all the speeds will b changed-

£14.99/£17.99= 512
£25 =2mb
£35=4mb
£50=6mb
Thats prob how it will work.
But not for very long, if they introduce something faster, in whch the lowest option could end up being 4mb!!
cause they have vsdl technology which means in theory they coukd have 100mbps connections.
Great time ahead, and im sticking with my 1mb telewest cable!!

They dont use vdsl

CATV is a very different system to DSL. CATV already supports speeds in
excess of 30mbs as it uses a dedicated coaxial cable, rather than the
paltry telephone-grade cable that is used for DSL. Whether or not TW
choose to make use of the spare capacity depends upon the market for
such services. I think WiMAX is going to start making waves (groan)
pretty soon, which will add a whole new level of competition to the
market. At present, consumers are pretty restricted in the broadband
they can get. It's usually a choice between BT Wholesale (ie any of the
DSL resellers like Demon, Nildram), NTL or Telewest.

Maybe one day we will see fibre to the premises, but don't hold your breath!

[ian@huth]

Originally Posted by Angelus

They dont use vdsl

CATV is a very different system to DSL. CATV already supports speeds in
excess of 30mbs as it uses a dedicated coaxial cable, rather than the
paltry telephone-grade cable that is used for DSL. Whether or not TW
choose to make use of the spare capacity depends upon the market for
such services. I think WiMAX is going to start making waves (groan)
pretty soon, which will add a whole new level of competition to the
market. At present, consumers are pretty restricted in the broadband
they can get. It's usually a choice between BT Wholesale (ie any of the
DSL resellers like Demon, Nildram), NTL or Telewest.

Maybe one day we will see fibre to the premises, but don't hold your breath!

They don't use VDSL but have fibre near enough to the home to make it a possibility in the future.

You are missing the LLU companies as a choice in areas where they operate which only rely on the BT copper "last mile".

[humey]

Correct BY is all fibre now, they upgrades, just the part to homes is now cooper/ then co-ax.

It tells you on their webpages somewhere.

Originally Posted by andymt

When they do introduce 6mb, all the speeds will b changed-

£14.99/£17.99= 512
£25 =2mb
£35=4mb
£50=6mb
Thats prob how it will work.
But not for very long, if they introduce something faster, in whch the lowest option could end up being 4mb!!
cause they have vsdl technology which means in theory they coukd have 100mbps connections.
Great time ahead, and im sticking with my 1mb telewest cable!!

As pointed out by Profpete

Whats VSDL