I'll give you an upvote but I disagree that equivalence of access is an obstacle - it's a major disadvantage to altnets that they can't easily resell their capacity to the likes of Sky and TalkTalk, who will do their marketing by default and can offer value-add services like TV and mobile which will increase take-up.
Sky and TalkTalk already operate as virtual ISPs within BT's FTTC provision (there's no network kit involved in the last mile, just billing arrangements), so it's not even an original idea. Ofcom could do altnets a great favour if it could develop a simple capacity exchange system, with regulation to prevent the larger brands abusing the altnets, while allowing the altnets to white label their broadband to recognised brands.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
