Following the supplier engagement session with UK-WISPA and INCA on Thursday 20 August 2020, the following questions were asked by suppliers that attended.
Please note that these questions were asked prior the interim voucher scheme closing to applications on 31 March 2022.
Q. Does the R100 voucher scheme require “Gigibit capability” like the UK government scheme?
A. No, it requires a minimum of a ‘superfast’ (over 30 Mbps) connection to be supplied. A 100 Mbps or even 1 Gbps capable connection would be preferable but isn’t necessary.
Q. Does that service price of £54 include or exclude VAT?
Q. Is it £54 with or without VAT?
A. The service price of £54 is inclusive of VAT.
Q. Are the £54 for Residentials only? What about Business connections?
A. You must offer a service that is compliant with the scheme but your customers can choose to upgrade to a better service if they wish, which you can charge more for.
Q. Is the £54 average per month across contract term including installation ?
A. It is intended that the voucher will cover the installation cost. The £54 per month is the ongoing charge to the customer of providing the service.
Q. The first number was “up to £5000”, the second seemed to be “£400” is the second number always a fixed subsidy or is that “up to” as well, & what are the criteria for determining specific value?
A. The Interim Voucher Scheme is up to £400, with a minimum value of £200. In exceptional circumstances, for non-standard installations, this may rise to £650.
Q. What are the technical requirements for sign up?
A. To qualify for SBVS funding suppliers must deliver an end-user connection that:
1. Has a connection speed greater than 30 Mbps;
2. Delivers a “step change” in service which is at least doubling the speed of the end users currently available speed;
3. Does not have a prohibitive data cap (subject to industry standard fair use rules);
4. Costs no more than £46.10 per month for broadband connectivity.
Q. We got funding via CBS and could not provide ‘superfast’ broadband. Does this exclude us from R100 too?
A. You must be able to provide a ‘superfast’ (over 30 Mbps) connection to be an eligible supplier to the SBVS.
Q. Is there any reason debarring us from applying for £400 or £5,000 vouchers for properties that are eligible for such vouchers even if we already provide the property with service? I can find nothing on SBVS website that rules this out.
A. Assuming the service you offer cannot support >30Mbps, the new service that you provide the premises with must, at the very least, deliver a “step change” in service which is at least doubling the speed of the end users currently available speed. You are only able to use the voucher for the actual cost of the upgraded equipment and fitting.
Q. Is there a requirement for us to offer Wholesale pricing on grant-funded sites?
A. No, there is no requirement to offer wholesale pricing on voucher funded sites.
Q. Will there be a requirement to deliver Open Access?
A. No, there is not a requirement to deliver open access.
Q. Is there any differentiation in voucher value between business and residential connections as there is with RGVS? It would appear not from the slides
A. No, there is no difference. It is up to £5,000 for both residential and business premises.
Q. Is the voucher issued when an eligible home is passed or when the household takes up a service?
A. The premises must take up the service and be able to show that they are receiving a minimum download speed of 30 Mbps
Q. Can you please confirm something for me. 1.1.2 of the supplier T&C's state that:
"the organisation has not received a previous voucher under the SBV Scheme and/or under any BDUK Voucher Scheme. SME Beneficiaries may benefit from multiple connections supported by the SBV Scheme at different locations, but no SME Beneficiary may benefit by more than £5,000 in total; "
Does that include the Better Broadband scheme? Some properties may have got a Better Broadband voucher, but that only required a 10Mb/s service to be delivered. So they have a service which is nowhere near 30Mb/s, but don't qualify for a voucher? I am not sure how DCMS and BDUK are linked?
A. No, it doesn't include the Better Broadband Scheme, as this wasn't a superfast scheme, unless a service of over 30 Mbps was delivered through it.