BT Plus now comes with a ‘Complete Wi-Fi’ guarantee – ensuring customers get strong wi-fi signal in every room of their home

With its Complete Wi-Fi, BT guarantees customers wall-to-wall coverage, and provides faster wi-fi speeds – boosting average speeds in a four-bedroom house by up to 25 per cent – allowing customers to stream HD content in more places around the home

BT’s Complete Wi-Fi is available immediately for BT Plus customers for just £5 per month

Customers can set-up their network from their smartphone with the My BT app. It allows them to make sure they’re getting the strongest signal around their home – directing them where to place their Wi-Fi Disc and check the strength of their wi-fi signal in every room.

To coincide with the launch of Complete Wi-Fi, BT has commissioned an in-depth report on how UK families are using their homes, highlighting the need for strong, reliable connectivity to make the most out of every single room.

Marc Allera, CEO of BT’s Consumer business said: “Strong, reliable Wi-Fi has never been so important in the home, with families using even more connected devices and wanting to make the most of every room in the home. We’re the first broadband provider in the world to launch a Complete Wi-Fi guarantee so customers can get online from every corner of their homes. Whether it’s converting the attic into an online gaming room for the kids or making a spare room into a home gym where you can stream music or work out videos, our unique Complete Wi-Fi opens up a world of possibilities for our customers.”

Commenting on the offer, Kester Mann, Principal Analyst, Operators at CCS Insight, said: “Complete Wi-Fi targets a major pain point for broadband customers and should prove particularly attractive to families connecting multiple devices. This is important given BT’s accelerating focus on households, rather than individuals. The Wi-Fi guarantee is a shrewd move that adds credibility to BT’s “Best Connected” strategy. By enabling better performance inside the home, BT will also hope to create a stronger platform upon which to bring future services to market and thus drive additional spend.”

“Offering Complete Wi-Fi only to BT Plus customers initially reinforces the premium positioning of BT’s new converged offer. This is a logical approach and affords the company flexibility to make it more inclusive at a later date. With the UK multiplay market only inching forward, there is no pressure on the company to risk eroding value by offering bundled services at a heavy discount. I expect to see further enhancements to BT Plus next year, that could pressure rivals to offer more competitive or comprehensive services,” Mann concluded.

According to Paolo Pescatore, SVP of Consumer Services, MIDiA Research, take-up of BT Plus has been modest so far with around 500,000 subscribers. “Arguably, one of its distinct features is the ‘keep connected’ promise,” he suggests. “BT will send out a 4G WiFi Mini Hub with unlimited data to customers if there is a problem with their broadband line. Furthermore mobile plans are upgraded to unlimited data.”

“This is a smart move for BT. It represents a great opportunity for the unit to sway households to sign up to BT Plus and replace ageing fixed line broadband routers. Over the past several years there has been an explosion in the number of devices that are being used in the house, connected TVs, various TV set-top-boxes, mobile devices including smartphones and tablets, games console, media streaming devices, laptops, smart speakers and many more. Current routers are not equipped to deal with the slew of connected devices. And many are not set up appropriately to provide connectivity throughout the house.”

MIDiA Research does not expect its rivals to respond immediately as some have their own offerings such as Sky with its Sky Q booster where each Sky Q box can be turned into a hotspot. “Interestingly, the move is closely aligned with BT Consumer’s desire to focus on driving value rather than volume. To a certain extent, this is reflected in its modest start to date. With this iteration of BT Plus, BT has clearly taken the initiative to build upon its relevance within the connected home environment, however there remains much more to be done; both inside and outside the home,” he concludes

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