BT Unveils Fusion Phone Service

BT Group and Motorola group have jointly come up with the world’s first phone service that works both as mobile and a traditional fixed line telephone.

The company is banking on the new service, dubbed BT Fusion, to attract customers by combining the convenience of a cell phone with cheaper fixed-line prices.

Calls made from within the home will run on BT’s broadband network and be charged at fixed-line rates. Outside the home they will run over Vodafone’s GSM network, and will be charged at mobile rates. All calls to BT Fusion phones will be charged at mobile rates.

Project Bluephone hopes to the convenience of a cell phone with cheaper fixed-line prices will attract customers.

"We know that many of our customers enjoy the convenience of their mobile phones when they’re out and about, but switch to using a landline phone when they arrive back home to save money or because they have little or no mobile coverage," said Ian Livingstone, chief executive of BT Retail.

Industry analysts were impressed by BT and Motorola’s debut. Mike Cansfield, a telecoms industry analyst at Ovum, said fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) would ultimately help drive call volumes across the BT network.