BT to offer DIY ISDN kit

December launch expected for a BT black box which will simplify ISDNinstallation and reduce costs.

BT's chairman, Iain Vallance, is on course to sign off a major deal with an ISDN equipment company, thought to be German, that will allow BT to offer a DIY ISDN installation kit to business and home users alike, according to sources.

The move would bring ISDN installation prices down at a stroke and take the political heat off an issue that has plagued BT for much of 1996.

BT has wanted to offer a DIY ISDN installation kit to users for some time, ever since Deutsche Telekom followed that path a few years back.

The UK telecoms giant has been held back, however, by the fact that Deutsche Telekom's "black box" conforms to ETSI/Euro ISDN standards rather than the DSS standard found on BT's ISDN-2 service.

Coupled with the fact that much of BT's network has required some tweaking to support ISDN-2 to all users, the deal has waited until a dual-standard ISDN black box kit was available.

Although BT remains tight lipped on the project, sources suggested that Vallance will agree a deal in mid-December with a major German vendor, allowing the telco to market a simple-to-install black box to ordinary phone users early in 1997.

When plugged into a standard BT Series 600 phone socket, and requesting a software change at the BT switch, the black box will offer standard ISDN-2 channels. Consumers are then free to install any standard ISDN equipment at their site, without the need for a BT engineer's visit.

Like Deutsche Telekom, BT will continue to offer engineer site visits for subscribers who want this service. But the DIY ISDN-2 black box, which will sell for around #99 through consumer outlets such as Dixon's, will allow BT to implement a similarly low-cost ISDN "installation" deal for subscribers.

Sources suggest that an all-in deal of ISDN installation kit plus a subscription to ISDN - subject to a one year minimum subscription - could be sold for as little as #150 through retail outlets.

Clearly, BT would have to negotiate the hurdle of pricing agreements with Oftel. However, judging from BT's behaviour over the latest changes to its ISDN tariffs, Oftel will almost certainly toe the line on the changes.