Laying down the gauntlet to Mercury Communications Ltd in the cable telephony business, British Telecommunications Plc yesterday announced that it has signed its own agreement with the UK Cable Operator Strategy Group, the body with which Mercury just signed a revised agreement (CI No 2,238 and page six inside). British Telecom’s agreement opens its telephone network to 60 UK cable television operators (any of the other 75 franchises can also sign) and could be worth tens of millions of pounds a year. All but three cable companies presently have interconnect agreements exclusively with Mercury. The deal provides for telephony interconnect, transmission of calls to other carriers, and access to BT’s Linkline and Premium Rate services. Like Mercury, British Telecom is also offering the emergency service, as well as basic national and international operator services.
