BT's Business Plan gets crossed wires

Call package is unpopular and overpriced, say critics

BT is claiming success after the launch of its Business Plan call package, but has been unable to give specific sales figures and critics say the product is unpopular and overpriced.

BT said sales for the first 16 weeks of Business Plan had beaten its previous product, Commitment Reward, by 97.5 per cent.

"We have been tracking sales each week, and so far we have well over 1,000 customers," said Nick Malyon, head of portfolio marketing for BT Indirect Channels (BTIC).

"We have also trained over 200 resellers using a web audio service."

Malyon admitted that more than half of sales were made directly by BT, but added that sales by resellers were increasing.

Resellers were also providing feedback, and improvements to Business Plan, such as analysis tools and extended contracts, had been introduced as a result, he said.

But Tony Lewis, managing director of telco firm Club Communications, was unconvinced. "If that is what BT calls a success, then it should enter the real world," he said.

"We and our resellers connect 4,500 customers a month with Energis. If this is what the might of BT can achieve, I am very impressed."

BT Business Plan has been the subject of much criticism from resellers that have claimed BT's set-up charge negates any saving made on the headline rate. BT has promised that no call will cost more than 10p.

However, John Thornhill, former general manager of BTIC, defended the plan, saying customers were fed up with the complex tariffs that had been introduced by competitors as a result of deregulation.