Cheaper Broadband for UK

BT has finally confirmed details of its long-awaited price-drop for ADSL in the UK. Unfortunately, despite lowering the monthly cost for the end user to about £20, it also hiked the installation fee up to £210. Despite protestations that this move will "kick-start" broadband activity in the UK, consumers in covered areas could also opt for a £25-a-month cable connection, which features a much lower installation cost of about £50. A bit of shopping around also reveals that the so-called "wires-only" ADSL product, which works by letting users install their own splitter and connecting hardware of their choice, is priced only slightly higher with a one-month termination notice and a fraction of the installation fee. Another thing; ties can be severed in as little as a month if the service does not perform, whereas regular ADSL users are contracted to a 12 month minimum. Meanwhile, although some ISPs have launched lower-priced products based on wires-only and presumably will continue to do so with the new cut-price ADSL, it remains to be seen whether or not they will pass these savings onto existing customers, with whom they reserve the right to change contract terms.