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BT Vision

AndrewMBaines
Dabbler
Posts: 21
Registered: ‎03-12-2007

BT Vision

Any news on when BT Vision will be available through plusnet? It was promised for 2007, but nearly 2008.
20 REPLIES 20
James
Grafter
Posts: 21,036
Thanks: 5
Registered: ‎04-04-2007

Re: BT Vision

Hi Andrew,
It won't be happening until next year sadly.  We're continuing to liaise with BT regarding this and will publish realistic timescales once available.
bobboulby
Grafter
Posts: 1,139
Thanks: 4
Registered: ‎20-07-2007

Re: BT Vision

Any idea at all James (Q1, Q2 ...)? This is something I'd definately be interested in.
Bob
James
Grafter
Posts: 21,036
Thanks: 5
Registered: ‎04-04-2007

Re: BT Vision

I think Q2 is more realistic.
But I really don't have any real timelines to go on I'm afraid.
bobboulby
Grafter
Posts: 1,139
Thanks: 4
Registered: ‎20-07-2007

Re: BT Vision

Ok thanks, I'll not hold my breath just yet.
Bob
AndrewMBaines
Dabbler
Posts: 21
Registered: ‎03-12-2007

Re: BT Vision

If I were to but a BT Vision box now, would I be able to get Freeview? Or does the security prevent it working without a BT connection at all times?
Ianwild
Grafter
Posts: 3,835
Registered: ‎05-04-2007

Re: BT Vision

Q2's probably not very realistic too in all honesty... Fraid I can't be more specific, but we certainly are doing everything we can from our side to push things on.
I'm afraid I've no idea about whether it would work as a freeview box on it's own. I'm not sure how dependent it is on the hub.
Ian
wegotjoy
Newbie
Posts: 1
Registered: ‎11-01-2008

Re: BT Vision

Is there any update on the potential timescales for BT Vision?  Having seen the product I am seriously thinking of moving over just to get it, and then I thought I'd just check the forums to see if Plus.net would be offering it, and I found this.  I'm very happy to avoid the hassle of changing ISP, and I'm quite happy where I am, but if a year and quarter cannot be pinpointed for delivery then I wonder if I'll just be waiting around for month after month with no news and wish I'd bitten the bullet and relieved the strain on my Tivo.  Any news, pretty pleeeease?
bobboulby
Grafter
Posts: 1,139
Thanks: 4
Registered: ‎20-07-2007

Re: BT Vision

Quote from: AndrewMBaines
If I were to but a BT Vision box now, would I be able to get Freeview? Or does the security prevent it working without a BT connection at all times?

Sorry Andrew I've only just noticed your post.
I'm not 100% sure but I think it will work as a Freeview PVR but with some limitations. I think for instance that you wont get an EPG as this is downloaded over Broadband. There is a very good BT Vision forum here http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=168, have a look through that.
Bob
hoario54
Newbie
Posts: 2
Registered: ‎25-02-2008

Re: BT Vision

I have just been searching the forums for "BT Vision" and came across this thread, so it seems like a good place to start for my first post.  Smiley
My brother recently moved over to BT Total Broadband and got himself a free BT Vision box. Having spent a little time playing with it and looking through the VOD content it looks like the perfect choice for me. It is a PVR, has all the Freeview channels as well as sports on demand (rather than having to pay for all football I can watch any game I like for £1.99), plus numerous other features that really appeal.
If anyone else wants to know more about what the BT Vision box has to offer check out http://www.radioandtelly.co.uk/btvision.html for an impartial view.
Now on to the Plus.net question...
So I understand that you are some way off providing a Plus.net version of the Home Hub and BT Vision, but with luck it will be with us during 2008.
My question is whether any pricing/sales options have been discussed?
I could move to BT Total Broadband and get the box for free but if you look past any initial discount I think Plus.net offers much better value in terms of the actual Broadband/Home Phone package.
So my preference would be to buy the Home Hub & Vision Box for a one off cost when it becomes available.
Is this likely to be an option or is the actual sales angle being left out of the discussion until after the hardware has been made to work?
Thank you in advance for any answers you may or may not be able to provide!  Wink
Ianwild
Grafter
Posts: 3,835
Registered: ‎05-04-2007

Re: BT Vision

At this point, I think it's too early to be considering the product angle of a PlusNet Vision service.
There are still noises about the way forwards for us offering Vision, but fundamentally on our current Broadband platform the nature of a streaming service like Vision is not technically a good fit, and there has been no movement on this within the last 12 months. There are a few opportunities on the horizon that might push things forward, for example it's been suggested we could offer Vision as a download type web service (with a different type of Hybrid set top box to the V-box), or it may be that the situation changes once the 21CN roll-out is underway. However all of these plans are still firmly on the drawing board and that means no solution is likely to be offered by us within the next 12 months at least (A date that will always stay the same until movement commences!).
Sorry to be the continued bearer of bad news.
Ian
hoario54
Newbie
Posts: 2
Registered: ‎25-02-2008

Re: BT Vision

But news none the less, thank you for your feedback Ian.
I don't want to leave Plus.net (made that mistake before, went to Tiscali, lesson learned... :-[) so I will hold fire for now and keep looking at the other TV options available.
I have to say though, I feel IPTV is going to be a big plus point for many Broadband users going forward (as demonstrated by the BBC iPlayer) so I hope you guys can work something out.
ISP's will have to offer (a version) of this service within the next 3 years as DSO gathers pace IMHO.
Those that don't will be left on the shelf. Luckily for you (and us I hope) is that you have the pioneer in the field backing you up.  Wink
bobboulby
Grafter
Posts: 1,139
Thanks: 4
Registered: ‎20-07-2007

Re: BT Vision

That's a disappointing update Ian.
I'm interested in your comment that the PlusNet platform is not well positioned to offer a streaming service. My impression has always been that PlusNet's traffic management/prioritisation system has put you in a good position to offer this.
Bob
chillypenguin
Grafter
Posts: 4,729
Registered: ‎04-04-2007

Re: BT Vision

This blog post will-bbc-iplayer-usage-break-the-internet-the-bandwidth-timebomb and the links contained within will explain where Ian's comments about Broadband not supporting Vision/IPTV
Chilly
Ianwild
Grafter
Posts: 3,835
Registered: ‎05-04-2007

Re: BT Vision

Quote from: bobboulby
That's a disappointing update Ian.
I'm interested in your comment that the PlusNet platform is not well positioned to offer a streaming service. My impression has always been that PlusNet's traffic management/prioritisation system has put you in a good position to offer this.

Proper streaming requires significant deployment of kit at the head end (The ISP side) to control the traffic flow and allow things like QoS (Quality of Service) and trick play (pausing live TV without the use of HDD buffering etc). That approach is not overly suited to ATM tunnels as used on IPStream (The wholesale product most non LLU ISPs provide) for a multitude of reasons. From an economic and technical perspective, the alternative of being on a network like RIN (The Retail Internet Network as used by BT customers) would make this setup much more feasible, but that platform has its own drawbacks, especially for our customers. We are working on this, but it's nowhere near as straightforward as we had initially hoped.
Download services, such as those used by BBC iPlayer, are quite a different proposition than streaming proper, and we do have a network well suited to deliver them (Although be under no illusions that the increase in viewing of such content is putting everyone's networks under strain currently).
Regards,
Ian