Business Internet - Leased lines & alternatives
Discussion
Morning,
Moving to new premises later this year. Previous occupier had a leased line...
I dont really need a leased line, we are an online based company but everything is hosted off site. We just need fast reliable internet for 20-30 users.
- I can get BT to come and install a typical broadband connection and then pay the usual £50-75pm Business broadband fees.
- I can get BT to come and switch the leased line on, enjoy good customer service and my own dedicated 100mbs line @ £500pm!!!
- Find an alternative?
I love the idea of a super fast leased line with no downtime - but £500pm is a lot.
Any recommendations, advice or even alternatives to traditional broadband? 4/5g?
Thanks in advance,
Cheers.
Moving to new premises later this year. Previous occupier had a leased line...
I dont really need a leased line, we are an online based company but everything is hosted off site. We just need fast reliable internet for 20-30 users.
- I can get BT to come and install a typical broadband connection and then pay the usual £50-75pm Business broadband fees.
- I can get BT to come and switch the leased line on, enjoy good customer service and my own dedicated 100mbs line @ £500pm!!!
- Find an alternative?
I love the idea of a super fast leased line with no downtime - but £500pm is a lot.
Any recommendations, advice or even alternatives to traditional broadband? 4/5g?
Thanks in advance,
Cheers.
It looks like Zen might be half the cost of BT:
https://www.zen.co.uk/business/large-business/prod...
Give them a call to discuss. Watch how much upstream bandwidth do you need for 30 users.
https://www.zen.co.uk/business/large-business/prod...
Give them a call to discuss. Watch how much upstream bandwidth do you need for 30 users.
At the moment we are operating off a standard BT business broadband without any major issues regarding bandwidth - although struggle if it goes down (which is rare).
I dont think we necessarily need mega bandwidth, im just looking at our options now we can potentially start from scratch.
I dont think we necessarily need mega bandwidth, im just looking at our options now we can potentially start from scratch.
£500/month is too much for a 100Mbps service - you should be looking at £250-300 ex VAT - maybe less.
1Gbps is commonly sold at around £450-550 a month
These are fully symmetric (same bandwidth up and down), uncontended connections which don't share public broadband infrastructure and are generally supported on business compatible SLA terms.
The fact that the previous occupier had a leased line there means the physical fibre is already in place so there should be no significant install cost. If it's a 100Mbps bearer and you wanted 1Gbps they would have to replace it which could cost.
Contrast that for a location without service currently. The last recent quote I had for LL installation was over £50k and that was down from £112k 5 years ago. Thats approximately half a mile of digging.
1Gbps is commonly sold at around £450-550 a month
These are fully symmetric (same bandwidth up and down), uncontended connections which don't share public broadband infrastructure and are generally supported on business compatible SLA terms.
The fact that the previous occupier had a leased line there means the physical fibre is already in place so there should be no significant install cost. If it's a 100Mbps bearer and you wanted 1Gbps they would have to replace it which could cost.
Contrast that for a location without service currently. The last recent quote I had for LL installation was over £50k and that was down from £112k 5 years ago. Thats approximately half a mile of digging.
theboss said:
£500/month is too much for a 100Mbps service - you should be looking at £250-300 ex VAT - maybe less.
1Gbps is commonly sold at around £450-550 a month
These are fully symmetric (same bandwidth up and down), uncontended connections which don't share public broadband infrastructure and are generally supported on business compatible SLA terms.
The fact that the previous occupier had a leased line there means the physical fibre is already in place so there should be no significant install cost. If it's a 100Mbps bearer and you wanted 1Gbps they would have to replace it which could cost.
Contrast that for a location without service currently. The last recent quote I had for LL installation was over £50k and that was down from £112k 5 years ago. Thats approximately half a mile of digging.
Quoted Installation costs are Zero - so assume its all in place. 1Gbps is commonly sold at around £450-550 a month
These are fully symmetric (same bandwidth up and down), uncontended connections which don't share public broadband infrastructure and are generally supported on business compatible SLA terms.
The fact that the previous occupier had a leased line there means the physical fibre is already in place so there should be no significant install cost. If it's a 100Mbps bearer and you wanted 1Gbps they would have to replace it which could cost.
Contrast that for a location without service currently. The last recent quote I had for LL installation was over £50k and that was down from £112k 5 years ago. Thats approximately half a mile of digging.
BT Rates I was quoted originally are:
100 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service – £583 pcm
500 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service – £695 pcm
1000 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service - £790 pcm
I pushed back saying its all too much and he came back at £460pcm on the 100MB.
Truespeed are pretty handy around here, their dedicated services are similar: £400-500pcm for 100mbs.
Where do I find these £250pm rates? I
russy01 said:
Quoted Installation costs are Zero - so assume its all in place.
BT Rates I was quoted originally are:
100 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service – £583 pcm
500 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service – £695 pcm
1000 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service - £790 pcm
I pushed back saying its all too much and he came back at £460pcm on the 100MB.
Truespeed are pretty handy around here, their dedicated services are similar: £400-500pcm for 100mbs.
Where do I find these £250pm rates? I
It is location sensitive to some extent as they are including the fibre rental cost over the contract term, and bandwidth may be priced differently depending on availability. If you're in a city based location or a business park it'll generally be cheaper than if you're on the side of a mountain miles away from some remote exchange.BT Rates I was quoted originally are:
100 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service – £583 pcm
500 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service – £695 pcm
1000 Mb upload & download dedicated Fibre service - £790 pcm
I pushed back saying its all too much and he came back at £460pcm on the 100MB.
Truespeed are pretty handy around here, their dedicated services are similar: £400-500pcm for 100mbs.
Where do I find these £250pm rates? I
Try these guys as they compare from various providers
https://www.amvia.co.uk
I just checked and I was getting quoted 1Gbps ranging from £409-439 per month so 100Mbps should be significantly less
Also don't be instantly put off by the big consumer providers like TalkTalk, Virgin, Vodafone if they are cost competetive, as their business connectivity services are a totally different kettle of fish
Edited by theboss on Wednesday 10th February 14:03
Most ISP’s will use an Openreach tail circuit to reach your premesis - unless you are in an area covered by Virgin or one of the ever increasing number of altnets who are building their own fibre networks and buy a connection from them. Someone mentioned Glide above as an example - their coverage is minuscule.
Openreach pricing is regulated - every ISP pays the same amount for any given service. You can have a look at the price list if you want to: https://www.openreach.co.uk/orpg/home/products/pri...
The install price for a 100Mbps or 1Gbps tail circuit is £1848. Openreach will spend up to £2800 to install the fibre to the premises from the nearest fibre node. Anything above £2800 is an Excess Construction Charge (ECC) and will be chargeable over and above the basic install price. There’s a rate card for ECC’s, and the prices are pretty reasonable for a job done properly: https://www.openreach.co.uk/orpg/home/products/pri...
As you already appear to have BT/Openreach fibre in the building there won’t be any ECC’s, but the provider will need to pay the £1848 connection charge - they will fit and test a new NTE and will need to connect the A end of the circuit - usually within the local exchange - to the providers own kit.
Providers will often amortise the install cost over the term of the contract rather than charge you up front.
TalkTalk Business are generally the cheapest route to a leased line in the absence of an altnet - you can get a price direct but they have a lot of resellers so their direct prices are set high enough to leave a reasonable margin for the resellers so you may find a reseller cheaper. Don’t expect great support through a cheap reseller though.
If you PM me the address of the premises I’ll have a look if any other options are available for you. Full disclosure - I work for an ISP, but we’re not interested in small leased line business so I won’t offer to sell you anything.
Openreach pricing is regulated - every ISP pays the same amount for any given service. You can have a look at the price list if you want to: https://www.openreach.co.uk/orpg/home/products/pri...
The install price for a 100Mbps or 1Gbps tail circuit is £1848. Openreach will spend up to £2800 to install the fibre to the premises from the nearest fibre node. Anything above £2800 is an Excess Construction Charge (ECC) and will be chargeable over and above the basic install price. There’s a rate card for ECC’s, and the prices are pretty reasonable for a job done properly: https://www.openreach.co.uk/orpg/home/products/pri...
As you already appear to have BT/Openreach fibre in the building there won’t be any ECC’s, but the provider will need to pay the £1848 connection charge - they will fit and test a new NTE and will need to connect the A end of the circuit - usually within the local exchange - to the providers own kit.
Providers will often amortise the install cost over the term of the contract rather than charge you up front.
TalkTalk Business are generally the cheapest route to a leased line in the absence of an altnet - you can get a price direct but they have a lot of resellers so their direct prices are set high enough to leave a reasonable margin for the resellers so you may find a reseller cheaper. Don’t expect great support through a cheap reseller though.
If you PM me the address of the premises I’ll have a look if any other options are available for you. Full disclosure - I work for an ISP, but we’re not interested in small leased line business so I won’t offer to sell you anything.
Good stuff from quinny100.
Other factors on price: do you have a router already / will you require the supplier to provide one? Your own router will save a bit of money, but you have to own it and manage it.
In terms of other suppliers, I currently use M247.
In terms of DSL connections, some of BT's infrastructure is pretty ropey (especially if you're in an area with aluminium rather than copper lines). Worth scoping out how good your neighbours' broadband is before you commit. Virgin, if they're available, use their own infrastructure - I've opted for them in the past over BT to avoid local line quality problems.
In terms of deciding whether to go DSL / LL, think about how many of your people will be using VOIP / Zoom / RDP / etc - all of those require symmetric bandwidth. 20 people making Zoom calls won't go well on the average DSL connection - you'll completely saturate the upstream with far less than that.
Other factors on price: do you have a router already / will you require the supplier to provide one? Your own router will save a bit of money, but you have to own it and manage it.
In terms of other suppliers, I currently use M247.
In terms of DSL connections, some of BT's infrastructure is pretty ropey (especially if you're in an area with aluminium rather than copper lines). Worth scoping out how good your neighbours' broadband is before you commit. Virgin, if they're available, use their own infrastructure - I've opted for them in the past over BT to avoid local line quality problems.
In terms of deciding whether to go DSL / LL, think about how many of your people will be using VOIP / Zoom / RDP / etc - all of those require symmetric bandwidth. 20 people making Zoom calls won't go well on the average DSL connection - you'll completely saturate the upstream with far less than that.
This comparison site for leased lines is always where I start to get a ball park price for clients:
https://www.hso.co.uk/leased-lines/
Ultimately I end up placing the business elsewhere at even better rates, but it will give you a good guide to what is possible at your exact address.
With 20-30 people, presume you want telephony too? Inbound/Outbound, both?
https://www.hso.co.uk/leased-lines/
Ultimately I end up placing the business elsewhere at even better rates, but it will give you a good guide to what is possible at your exact address.
With 20-30 people, presume you want telephony too? Inbound/Outbound, both?
russy01 said:
Virgin - nothing installed in this area.
Talktalk, going to call me.
BT - insisting £460pm is best they can do for 100mbs.
Try a contact of mine, pretty sure he quoted my old company £300ish for 100 up/down.Talktalk, going to call me.
BT - insisting £460pm is best they can do for 100mbs.
Lee at Town and Country - https://www.town-and-country-comms.co.uk/
I seem to remember there was some funding available too.
Talk to me about Talktalk...
Ive have terrible experiences of Talktalk as a retail customer 5yrs ago and wouldnt touch them again in that sense.
However their Leased line option is coming out significantly cheaper than BT at £280pm. They are also telling me that they own or have control of my closest exchange and are the dogs when it comes to leased lines.
Is it all marketing bull, or is there some truth to all of this?
Ive have terrible experiences of Talktalk as a retail customer 5yrs ago and wouldnt touch them again in that sense.
However their Leased line option is coming out significantly cheaper than BT at £280pm. They are also telling me that they own or have control of my closest exchange and are the dogs when it comes to leased lines.
Is it all marketing bull, or is there some truth to all of this?
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