BT’s 21CN roll-out in Wales falls short

Apr 3 2008 by Sion Barry, Western Mail

PLANS by telecommunications giant BT to migrate 350,000 customers to a world-first integrated internet-based network in South Wales have fallen well short of initial expectations.

When announcing that Cardiff and a number of other locations in South Wales would be the first territory in the UK to migrate to its so-called 21st century (21CN) IP (internet protocol) network, back in 2005, BT envisaged 350,000 customers being connected by 2007.

However, the Western Mail has learnt that only a small fraction of that number are currently 21CN enabled. BT confirmed that while it was still committed to its 21CN roll-out, it has shifted emphasis to the delivery of new services to customers.

It said this “new approach” had been developed over the past year during “extensive consultations with communications providers, suppliers and extensive testing”.

A BT spokesman declined to reveal the exact number of customers, both households and businesses, currently on the new network in South Wales.

However, it is understood to be fewer than 10,000.

All BT would confirm was that by the end of this year “tens of thousands” of household and businesses will be served by 21CN.”

Moreover, it declined to comment as to when the project would be completed in South Wales, although it said it was still confident that the “vast majority” of the roll-out programme across the UK, at a cost of £10bn, would be completed by 2011.

The ambitious project is pioneering the carrying of voice data and internet services on a single network – ending BT’s dependence on telephony through the public switched telephone network.

BT said the migration to a single high-speed network would generate cost savings of £1bn a year. The complicated roll-out in South Wales, which involves the upgrading of existing exchanges, is being delivered with a number of key telecom equipment supply partners, including Alcatel and Chinese-owned Huawai. To date the roll-out in South Wales has cost £460m.

A spokesman for BT said, “ We believe we will generate new revenues from the new services, but as a public company it would be inappropriate to make predictions at this stage. Cost savings are expected and we are comfortable with progress.”

On the change in emphasis to the 21CN project in South Wales the company said in a statement, “BT is the first telco in the world to undertake a pioneering project of this type and we are learning all the time.

“As we moved forward with the programme, it became clear that there was a better way to best meet the needs of our customers than the original ‘mass migration’ plans.

“The new approach agreed with the industry involves us prioritising the delivery of new services, such as ethernet and next generation broadband, ahead of migrating existing services. This ensures that the new services become available as quickly as possible.

“The overall objectives and vision of 21CN (of next generation technology being rolled out across the UK to rural and urban areas alike) remain the same.

“A great deal of progress has already been achieved – and Wales has played a key role in that progress. Forty per cent of the UK infrastructure has been rebuilt.

“In South Wales, customers have been successfully migrated to the new, next-generation network; thousands of kilometres of optical fibre have been installed; and thousands of ‘man years’ of testing and development have been successfully completed.

“We owe a great debt to the people of Wales. They have helped put BT and the UK at the forefront of the worldwide telecommunications industry.

“The migration of South Wales customers to 21CN is expected to grow considerably over the next few months. Tens of thousands of households and businesses in Wales will be served by 21CN by the end of this year.”

The company said it was working with the Welsh Assembly Government and other Welsh organisations to spur the development of new 21CN-based applications which would help to establish Wales as a centre for ICT research and innovation.