”End-to-end connectivity” describes the process of enabling retail customers to make calls to other customers or services on the same network or other providers’ networks .
This is important for both competition generally and end-users individually. Competing communications providers need to be able to interconnect with other networks in order to provide a full service to their customers. Customers expect to be able to call every other retail customer irrespective of the network to which the called party is connected.
In November and December 2005, the Competition Appeal Tribunal’s (CAT) gave judgment and made an order on the appeal by H3G against Ofcom’s decision that H3G had significant market power in the market for mobile voice call termination on H3G’s network (case number 1047/3/3/04).The CAT remitted to Ofcom for reconsideration whether H3G has significant market power in the market for mobile wholesale voice call termination on its network taking into account the extent to which countervailing buyer power exists in BT and any other matters as are relevant at the time of Ofcom’s reconsideration.
Ofcom considers among other things that it is objectively justifiable, proportionate, non-discriminatory and transparent to impose the access-related condition on BT.
Therefore, Ofcom revokes the Oftel guidelines and at Annex 1 there is a notification setting an access-related condition on BT.