Written by Mary Lennighan
The regulator has issued a set of guidelines designed to ensure that customers know more about what they're signing up to at the point of sale, so they avoid any unwelcome surprises afterwards.
Ofcom said the term 'fibre' is being applied inconsistently by the industry, so that sometimes it refers to fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP), while at other times it could mean fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) or hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC).
As a result, according to to Ofcom's own research, only 46 percent of broadband customers who claimed to be connected to full fibre actually live in areas where the technology is available. Furthermore, 27 percent lack confidence in understanding the language and terminology used by their provider.
Ofcom hopes its new guidelines will clear up this confusion.
It has called on telcos to give a short description of the underlying network technology of each broadband product using one or two, clear and unambiguous terms, such as 'full-fibre', 'part-fibre', 'cable', or 'copper'. These terms need to be used at point of sale, regardless of whether the purchase is made online, in person, or over the phone. It should also be set out in the contract information and in the contract summary.
