On 04-Feb-13 15:17, Jean-Francois Mezei wrote: > On 13-02-04 16:04, Scott Helms wrote: >> Subscribers don't care if the hand off is at layer 1 or layer 2 so this is >> moot as well. > This is where one has to be carefull. The wholesale scenario in Canada > leaves indepdendant ISPs having to explain to their customers that they can't > fix certain problems and that they must call the telco/cableco to get it > fixed. (in the case of a certain cable company, they can't even call them, it > has to be done by email with response of at least 48 hours).
This is not a show-stopper. In my state (TX), electric utilities have been strictly segregated into generation, distribution and retail. When I have a problem with my service, I call my retailer, who puts in a ticket with the distributor (i.e. grid operator). However, since the distributor has an equal relationship with _all_ retailers, rather than also having a retail arm itself (as in the telco model), there is no service problem. If anything, service is _better_ than when distribution and retailing were done by the same (monopoly) utility company because there are now formal SLAs and penalties. > Another aspect: customers espect to be able to switch seamlessly from one ISP > to the next. But ISP-2 can't take over from ISP-1 until ISP-1 has relinquised > control over the line to the end user. In a layer 1 scenario, it means ISP-1 > has to physically go and deinstall their CPE and disconnect strand from their > OLT, and then ISP-2 can do the reverse and reconnect evrything to provide > services. Wrong. As soon as retailer 2 puts in the connect order, everything gets switched over within one business day. The distributor stops billing retailer 1 because they're no longer in the picture. Now, if different CPE is required (not an issue for electricity), then the customer would notice that the CPE from retailer 1 suddenly stops working. They would then unplug it and follow the directions that came in the box with the CPE from retailer 2. No truck roll needed, unless they paid extra for that. (In a slightly different space with similar costs, prices and volumes, one carrier said rolling a truck for installation would blow their profit margin for the entire year.) S -- Stephen Sprunk "God does not play dice." --Albert Einstein CCIE #3723 "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the K5SSS dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking
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