BT to share dial-up revenues with ISPs

BT is hoping to pick up business from Internet service providers (ISPs) by offering to share dial-up call revenues with them, enabling ISPs to offer customers a range of pay-as-you-go access services.

To qualify for the scheme - which may attract a number of smaller ISPs that have been hit by the success of Freeserve - ISPs must commit to renting a minimum of 50 connection ports from BT on a quarterly or annual basis. The ISPs can then opt for one of three dial-up tariffs:

- 08457 prefixed numbers - ISPs' customers are charged for Net access at local call costs

- 0870 090 prefixed numbers - ISPs charge at local rates, plus 1p per minute

- 0800 prefixed numbers - users pay no call charges, but the ISPs pay 3p per minute for calls

Dave Hughes, BT's head of Internet and IP Network Services, said the move could even act as a step towards an unmetered call pricing structure, if ISPs choose the third option. ISPs could charge customers a monthly fee of, say, £40, after which users would incur no more costs. "Although the ISP would then have to pay us, because that's effectively acting as a reverse charge call," Hughes pointed out.

BT claims the scheme will benefit businesses as well as consumers as ISPs experiment with price plans.

A full video interview with Dave Hughes will be appear soon on Silicon.com's ISP Channel.