BT 2012 Annual Report Download - page 17

Business
14
Products and services
BT Retail sells calls, lines and broadband into the consumer market
under two brands: BT and Plusnet. Under our BT Infinity brand we offer
super-fast fibre-based broadband using fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC)
and fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) technology. We also offer a pay-TV
service, BT Vision. In order to win and retain customers it is important
for us to offer all three services and to package them together in flexible
bundles to meet customer needs and respond to competition. We offer
customers a wide choice of packages of calls, broadband and pay-TV
services. They offer our best value to customers and encourage take-up
of additional services. When choosing their lines and calls, broadband
and pay-TV, more than half of UK consumers now buy two or more of
those services from the same supplier.
Voice services
We provide fixed lines and a choice of calling plans, including a range of
unlimited options to meet customer preferences for evening, weekend
and peak-time calling. All options include free calling features such as
call waiting and free inclusive 0800 and 0845 minutes. We also offer
alternative payment options such as Line Rental Saver which reduces
the line rental charge if customers pay for a whole year upfront. We are
the only company to provide BT Basic, a simple, low-cost telephone
service available to people who are on low incomes.
Broadband
We sell broadband services under the BT, Plusnet and BT Infinity brands
with a wide range of speeds. BT Broadband and BT Infinity have a range
of options for usage limits and bundled call plans, and include our
free wireless Home Hub, free online storage and security services and
unlimited access to our wi-fi hotspots.
For details of our broadband products see
www.productsandservices.bt.com
BT Vision
Our BT Vision TV service offers customers standard Freeview channels,
the ability to pause, record and rewind live TV and a catch-up service
from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5. Customers get a Vision+
box, which allows them to stream over 5,600 hours of on-demand
programming, including BBC iPlayer, and to download high definition
(HD) and 3D content. We currently offer a choice of two subscription
packages, Essential and Unlimited, and the option to subscribe to Sky
Sports 1 and 2, inclusive with the ESPN channel.
UK Small and medium-sized enterprises
One of our strategic priorities is to be the ‘Brand for Business’ for UK
SMEs so this is an important customer segment for us. The UK SME
market is mainly served by the BT Business division of BT Retail.
Customers
In the UK there are estimated to be 4.5m SMEs, ranging in size from sole
traders to businesses with up to 1,000 employees. The communications
and IT needs of these customers vary considerably, depending on
factors such as size, number of sites in which they operate, their industry
sector and their maturity.
We serve around 1m SME customers across the UK from small start-
ups to medium-sized businesses with up to 1,000 employees. Small
customers, with fewer than 50 employees, account for over 90% of
ourcustomers.
Markets
The SME market for fixed and mobile communications and IT services
in the UK is very fragmented and highly competitive, with competitors
varying by the customer segments they serve and the products and
services they offer. Overall the market has been impacted by the current
economic conditions.
Fixed telecoms services
The SME market for fixed voice is declining with call volumes falling
due to substitution by mobile, wireless, email and voice over IP (VoIP)
and the impact of the current economic conditions. BT has a 49%
market share of lines in the total UK business market but there is a lot of
competition with over 300 resellers as well as fixed network operators.
Competition varies by market segment with key competitors including
Daisy, TalkTalk, Virgin Media, XLN, Alternative Networks, Cable &
Wireless Worldwide, Colt Group and KCOM Group.
IT services
The IT services market has experienced challenging conditions in
recent years with low revenue growth. However, there is growing
interest in new service and business models, including cloud-based
services such as managed hosting of IT applications and data, and
unified communication and collaboration (UCC) tools. These provide
companies with greater control and flexibility to manage their costs. Key
competitors in the SME IT services market include Computacenter, SCC,
Phoenix IT, Kelway, Dimension Data, Logicalis and 2E2.
Mobile
The SME mobile market is growing, in particular in areas such as
mobile data access and machine-to-machine services. There has been
a significant growth in smartphones which is driving growth in data
volumes. The leading operators in the mobile market are Vodafone, O2
and Everything Everywhere and we have a small but growing share.
Products and services
We have a broad portfolio of products and services covering fixed
telephony, IT and mobility ranging from simple standalone services to
managed services and complex customised solutions. We sell to smaller
customers through four channels: call centres; 41 Local Businesses,
which are not part of BT but are independently owned companies that
exclusively sell our products and services; non-exclusive relationships
with indirect partners, and online sales via bt.com. For larger customers
we operate desk-based and field-based account management teams.
Voice services
We provide a full range of fixed voice services from standard calls
and lines to fully managed office phone systems and contact centre
solutions. As well as traditional voice, we increasingly sell VoIP services.
We have a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) agreement with
Vodafone and sell mobile voice and data services.
Broadband and internet
We provide a range of internet access options including: BT Business
Broadband over copper; BT Infinity for Business over FTTC and FTTP;
BTNet dedicated internet access, and mobile broadband. Other internet
Customers, markets and products
Overview
BusinessStrategy
Performance
Governance
Financial statements
Additional information Overview
BusinessStrategy
Performance
Governance
Financial statements
Additional information