BT 2016 Annual Report Download - page 262

268 BT Group plc
Annual Report 2016
Glossary of terms
•
2G: the second generation of mobile telephony systems. It
uses digital transmission to support voice, low-speed data
communications and short messaging services.
3G: the third generation of mobile systems. It provides high-speed
data transmission and supports multimedia applications like video,
audio and internet access as well as conventional voice services.
4G: the fourth generation of mobile systems. It is designed to
provide faster data download and upload speeds on mobile
networks.
A
ADSL: asymmetric digital subscriber line – a digital technology
that allows the use of a standard telephone line to provide high-
speed data communications.
ARPU: average revenue per user.
B
BDUK: Broadband Delivery UK – the UK Government body
charged with helping to oversee the use of public money for rolling
out fibre broadband in harder-to-reach parts of the country.
BTPS: BT Pension Scheme – the defined benefit pension scheme
which was closed to new members on 31 March 2001.
BTRSS: BT Retirement Saving Scheme – the scheme set up on
1 April 2009 as a successor to the BT Retirement Plan. It is a
contract-based, defined contribution arrangement.
C
CP: communications provider – a provider of communications
services – telephony, broadband, video on demand and other
services.
D
DSL: digital subscriber line – a broadband service where existing
wires between the local telephone exchange and a customer’s
telephone sockets are transformed into a high-speed digital line.
E
Ethernet: high-capacity, high-speed digital connections available
throughout the UK. They tend to be used by businesses and
offices for which a domestic connection is inadequate when large
numbers of devices have to be online.
F
FTTC: fibre-to-the-cabinet – a variant of GEA which uses fibre
to provide high connection speeds from the exchange to a street
cabinet near to a customer premises, and a copper line for the final
connection to the premises.
FTTP: fibre-to-the-premises – a variant of GEA which uses fibre
to provide high connection speeds for the whole route from the
exchange to the customer.
G
G.Fast: an innovative technology that uses higher frequencies
than FTTC to provide faster broadband speeds over copper.
GEA: generic Ethernet access – Openreach’s wholesale fibre
broadband product.
I
IP: internet protocol – a packet-based protocol for delivering data
– including voice and video – across networks.
IPTV: internet protocol television – the combination of broadcast
content with broadband content, delivering both through the
television.
IPX: IP exchange – a telecommunications interconnection model
for the exchange of IP-based traffic between customers of
separate mobile and fixed operators.
L
Ladder pricing: Ladder pricing links the amounts that BT charges
mobile operators for mobile calls to 0800, 0845 and 08700
numbers terminating on our network to the retail price charged by
mobile operators to their customers.
LLU: local loop unbundling – the process by which CPs can rent
the copper lines between BT’s exchanges and customer premises
from Openreach to provide voice and broadband services using
their own equipment.
M
M2M: machine-to-machine – M2M communications refers to
connecting electronic devices to one another. This can streamline
processes and enable tasks to be automated.
Managed Ethernet Access Service: a product that uses pseudo
wire technology to carry Ethernet traffic between the mobile
operators; cell and core sites in a single converged packet network.
MPLS: multi-protocol label switching – supports the rapid
transmission of data across network routers, enabling modern
networks to achieve high quality of service.
MVNO: mobile virtual network operator – an arrangement where a
retailer sells mobile services under its own brand but uses a mobile
network owned by another operator to do so.