BT's Openreach arm cuts wholesale prices

BT Group's Openreach infrastructure business has pledged to cut wholesale prices for its high speed broadband network, according to regulator Ofcom.

Openreach, which is part of the wider BT group but is being separated off into an independent structure where it can control all the physical network assets, has cut the price by 1.1% that other internet service providers such as Sky, TalkTalk and Vodafone have to pay to use the lines.

In March, Ofcom set a temporary wholesale price of £84.38 for Openreach to charge for use of its 'MPF' service maintenance level 1.

Openreach confirmed on Wednesday that it will reduce its charge for this level of service £84.38 from July 1, Ofcom said.

The cut, which is estimated to result in savings of close to £10m across the industry, was made in “good faith and as a gesture of goodwill”, Openreach said in a letter to the regualtor.

Earlier in May, after Ofcom delayed the introduction of a wholesale price reduction on Openreach’s 40Mbps fibre-to-the-cabinet service, Vodafone, TalkTalk and Sky complained it could cost consumers £140m.