BT Trials 'Midband' a step away from Broadband?

BT is testing what it has coined 'Midband'. It's primarily for homes in the UK that cannot at present receive BT Broadband. BT broadband currently covers 77% of BT's network, other areas are currently being upgraded where there is demand.

Midband will feature an always-on connection, and run at 128kbps.

Experts think they will probably use ISDN for this service, using ISDN's 16kbps D-Channel for the always-on connection, which can be used for receiving emails, and the 2 B-Channels (64kbps each) for simultaneous data and voice.

If this is the case then dialling up will be necessary, although ISDN dial-up is significantly faster than a traditional modem.