17 04 2009 - In 2007, UK telco British Telecom called running fiber to the home "premature," instead opting to milk copper for a little longer. In 2008, they announced a widely lauded plan to invest in "fiber" (to the node), though the specifics weren't particularly impressive when you looked a little closer, and the "fiber to the press release" announcement was more about getting what they wanted from lawmakers. Now the carrier, after getting a regulatory back rub from the British Government, is back to saying that nobody really wants fiber to the home: "Of course a Ferrari is faster than a Ford," says BT CEO Ian Livingstone. "But most people are happy with a Ford."
You'd at least wish that executives would make their car analogies consistent. Back in 2003, Qwest's Utah President Jerry Fenn, when defending his company's opposition to municipal fiber and reliance on DSL asked: "Why provide a Rolls-Royce when a Chevrolet will do?" Comcast CEO Brian Roberts of course has had his own thoughts on that, likening cable broadband technology to a BMW, while insisting that DSL is a "Hyundai." Personally, we'd like an Aston Martin, please.
Source: BroadBand DSL Report.com
