AOL has more than a million broadband subscribers out of a total of more than 2.3 million members in the UK. The investment in the UK local telephone network is being funded by parent company Time Warner.
The process of local loop unbundling allows third party companies to replace BT as the service provider over the local loop telephone line from the local exchange to the customer.
The initial investment of �50 million in the first half of 2006 will cover up to 300 exchanges, covering around a fifth of UK households. If successful, the rollout may be extended to up to 1,000 exchanges, covering more than half the country, at an estimated cost of a further �70 million. In exchanges where it is not economic for AOL to have equipment installed, it will continue to deliver broadband and telephone services using wholesale access services.
The process of local loop unbundling allows third party companies to replace BT as the service provider over the local loop telephone line from the local exchange to the customer.
The initial investment of �50 million in the first half of 2006 will cover up to 300 exchanges, covering around a fifth of UK households. If successful, the rollout may be extended to up to 1,000 exchanges, covering more than half the country, at an estimated cost of a further �70 million. In exchanges where it is not economic for AOL to have equipment installed, it will continue to deliver broadband and telephone services using wholesale access services.