British Telecommunications Plc says it is still evaluating the commercial feasibility of Always On/Dynamic ISDN technology, and is not committing to the technology in spite of the enthusiasm of its US counterparts. US Telcos have stated their support for the technology (CI No 3188), which uses the 16Kbps D-channel of a Basic Rate ISDN connection to transfer data as well as call set-up information. British Telecom however, is reluctant to discuss any D-channel applications, claiming it is still evaluating the possible commercial uses. Pacific Bell Inc considers that there are a host of potential D-channel applications ranging from remote alarms to credit card verification. The marked contrast in approach could have something to do with the different pricing structure of Europe and the US, where the US free local call rate has caused the telecoms circuit switched infrastructure to be swamped with data calls from people pegging up their connections. Any relief of the circuit network, via this kind of transfer to the packet switched network is likely to be viewed favorably by the US telcos. Europe doesn’t suffer from the same traffic saturation, and perhaps isn’t going to take this technology on board so readily.
