sloth82 Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 (edited) He just can't help himself, can he? :angry: It will amount to a 50p a month tax for every household in the country with a fixed phone line. Edited June 16, 2009 by sloth82 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phobos Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 He just can't help himself, can he? :angry: actually I think its quite good value Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Financial Hack Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 You could just have a mobile and use Virgin Media's cable for your internets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jp1 Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 He just can't help himself, can he? :angry: No doubt Brown "has taken a tough decision" and "It's the right thing to do" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
three pint princess Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 (edited) Do you have to pay if you have cable? Edit: "The government is considering a number of options, including a supplement in the region of 50p a month on fixed lines which would raise money for a ‘Final Third’ fund that would be used to secure roll out to the final third of the UK population. " http://www.culture.gov.uk/what_we_do/broadcasting/6216.aspx Looks like it hasn't been thought out or finalised yet as to the price or the target. What policy options have been considered? Please justify any preferred option. Option 1: Do nothing Option 2: A supplement in the region of 50p on all fixed lines from 2010 for a ‘Final Third’ Fund. Option 3: Make limited changes to Ofcom’s duties under the Communications Act 2003 Option 4: Offer publicly funded subsidies for regional NGA projects Option 5: Increase capital allowances for telecommunication companies. Option 2: Encourage greater and more extensive investment by introducing a supplement for all fixed lines by 2010. The government is proposing a ‘Final Third’ Project which would aim to deliver at least 90% coverage of next generation networks by 2017 by improving the commercial business case of rolling out super-fast broadband.. One of the measures would include a general supplement on all fixed lines from 2010 in the region of 50p per month for a ‘Final Third’ Fund. It is believed that this represents a sensible and balanced national investment to ensure that the overwhelming majority of the country can get access to next generation super fast broadband. It is estimated that a supplement in the region of 50p per fixed line would raise around £150- 175 million per year 83 83 £0.50 x 12 months x 26-28 fixed lines (The total number of fixed lines is of approximately 28 million. The range reflects the potential for substitutability between fixed and mobile lines since some substitution has occurred in the past and is likely to continue in the future) Although £150m-£175m could be sufficient to meet policy objectives, estimates of the total costs to roll out NGA to the final third of the population cannot be provided since this could have an adverse effect on the potential public procurement process. This is the main reason why cost estimates cannot be provided at the present time. Although there will be a cost to consumers and businesses associated with the additional fixed line charge, they will enjoy the benefits and opportunities offered by next generation broadband. The increase in the price of broadband may affect demand for this service and the supplement could also have an impact in changing the relative prices of close substitutes such as fixed and mobile broadband or fixed and mobile telephone services. All of these issues will be explored more fully in the impact assessment accompanying the public consultation. Edited June 16, 2009 by Tom Peters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sillybear2 Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I suppose they finally want to kill off BT and drive everyone over to mobile phones and broadband. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Bart' Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I have cable broadband and use Skype for phone calls, so for once, I'm completely unaffected. Of course I do have to content with VM's "throttling", but that's a different story altogether. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lulu Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 actually I think its quite good value I think it is pretty poor actually, money for this kind of thing shoud be coming out of central funds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cogs Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I have cable broadband and use Skype for phone calls, so for once, I'm completely unaffected.Of course I do have to content with VM's "throttling", but that's a different story altogether. I'm with VM as well and shall we say, free in my use of the unlimited service. I've not to my knowledge ever noticed 'throttling', how does it manifest itself, is it very dramatic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BoomBoomCrash Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 actually I think its quite good value It's what is represents. Sure it's only 50 pence a month now, but how long before it's many times that amount? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonb Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 actually I think its quite good value It is yet another tax. It will start of at 50p per month. Then it will be 75p per month. And it will keep on rising. I already pay about £5 per month in VAT for my telephone services, this will be on top of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swissy_fit Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 He just can't help himself, can he? :angry: I hate GB, but can't see the problem with this in theory. It is very very little money, and everyone will benefit from better networks. The problem will be in the incompetent way in which the money is spent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sillybear2 Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 It is yet another tax. It will start of at 50p per month. Then it will be 75p per month. And it will keep on rising.I already pay about £5 per month in VAT for my telephone services, this will be on top of that. Actually the VAT will probably be on top of the tax, like how they levy it on fuel duty too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Bart' Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I've not to my knowledge ever noticed 'throttling', how does it manifest itself, is it very dramatic? The throttling limit is supposedly set at around 800 meg of downloaded data during a particular period of the day (see this link for a fuller account). Basically, I was trying to download something that was well over 2 gig (software demo). At first I was getting between 700-800k a second (thanks to Adobe's servers). After I crossed the 1.2 or 1.3 gig point, the speed dropped to 20k a second. (Because I kept going back and trying to re-download this file at different times, I ultimately ended up using even more bandwidth than I would have done had VM media just given me the service I'm paying for in the first place.) Now in theory, even when throttled, I should be getting more than 20k a second, so maybe that's not the best example. For my tariff (10 meg) I should be being throttled down to 75% of my normal speed. Going to something like Broadband Speed Checker confirms the drop in speed. Maybe it's because I surf at odd times that I run into these limits? Or maybe it's all the movies I download (*cough*). If you're on the XXL package, you won't get throttled at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Loo Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 so they raise tax for the final third....who is going to fit it? a contractor of some magnitude I would guess. my idea, if they wish to do this, is have a BT levy on every line and the money goes to them, ring fenced for bonuses and secretaries for the big nobs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahBell Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 scrapping analogue radio too. means you need to use electricity to listen to the radio. bad for the planet. and encouraging consumerism. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybong Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Apparently they estimate it's going to cost a total of about £200 million and so of course they're going to lumber the average telephone user with the cost. If they were to cut MPs expenses to a reasonable amount they could easily fund "the Final Third" cost out of current taxation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corevalue Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 What happened to the huge tax receipts (£22.7 billion) the government got when they sold off the 3G licenses? Not enough to cover the roll-out? Thieving ****s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockhopper Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 to put this back on topic ... seem to frequently see various IT contractor types (web designer etc ) who live out in the wonderful glens , welsh mountains , wild wild countryside etc , and they are forever moaning about the crap broadband level and how they need it improving to stimulate the countryside economy ...what they mean is make life easier for them and to push up the price of their houses as every other IT contractor decides to move there .... keep it throttled I say, and allow the locals to be able to afford to buy a home Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomwatkins Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 50p my ****. Is this the same budget office that costed the Olympics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yodigo Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Yet another "stealth" tax. Once it's there, it's staying there, and as pointed out, will only go up. BT have also scrapped the Light User Scheme. You can only get a discount if you're on social security benefits. I'm keeping an eye on mobile broadband. When it gets cheap enough (or if, BT may try to block price decreases somehow) I'll ditch the land line, and just use my PAYG mobile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kootenai Brown Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 (edited) It's about time. This is essential for the UK. I fear that if we do not have streaming porn into every UK household by 2012 we will not meet our target of making 100% of the population total w@nkers. Edited June 16, 2009 by Burned Out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eightiesgirly Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 50p my ****. Is this the same budget office that costed the Olympics? Bet it's a tenner within 2 years, then taxes will be raised to fund a pensioners/unemployed/ generally sad people/ all manner of footpads discount Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lifecoach Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Technology is moving so quickly there may not be fixed telephone lines in a few years time. Shows how much the government understands the internet. Its a bit like charging everyone a levy when they have their horse shoed to pay for a space station! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DissipatedYouthIsValuable Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Ah, waiter... May I have the stealth tax to start, followed by bankruptcy and the state failure dessert with cream? No cream sir. Ah. And get your own ******ing dinner. Ah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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