BT encouraged to be more open

I have often written in this blog about open source and its use in the kinds of equipment which sits at the heart of telecommunications networks. Carrier Grade Linux and other open source technology, whilst not quite pervasive yet, are becoming more and more commonplace as underlying component technologies in mobile and Internet core elements.

On the other hand, I haven't written much about user devices (or Customer Premise Equipment). However you can be sure that open source software is making an equally big mark in that area although, generally speaking, its use stays "under the radar" with most users remaining unaware of the nature of the software which operates the networked devices in their homes.

Occasionally however, events force open source software above the radar and into plain sight. The last few weeks have seen an example of this in the UK centering around a particularly widely used ADSL broadband Wireless router; the BT Home Hub. The device was launched about six months ago and supports an integrated VoIP phone as well as BT's Fusion FMC offering and their Vision IPTV offering. BT supply telephone and DSL services to a large proportion of UK household and, as a result, the Home Hub has gained many users in a short time.

A few weeks ago, after questions raised by users, BT admitted that the Home Hub was based on open source software (including Linux) and is therefore subject to the terms of the GPL. Since then the story has been closely followed by The Register, The Free Software Foundation Europe and various blogs (most notably Home Hub Blog).

Eventually, after a short delay, BT posted the source code for the Linux kernel used on the Home Hub on a web site (found here). However, the situation seems to be rumbling on with BT claiming they have published everything relevant and the Free Software Foundation Europe claiming that some elements (such as the top level Makefile) are still missing.

This situation and the continuing pressure on BT to open up their source code highlights, for me, how far we have come down the route to open source. It feels starkly different to the situation in the late 1980's and early 1990's when I was involved in the design of a test strategy for a telephony device which was approved under the BABT certification process. The aim of the testing process was to ensure that users were safe while using the product and also that the network itself would not be adversely affected by connection of the product. The process we put in place included safety tests as well as device functionality tests and, after the tests were successfully passed, we were required to physically seal the plastics so that the device could not be tampered with. These procedures were enforced by stringent inspections and failure of any part of the testing process caused a stop of the production line.

So, in some ways, it seems somewhat strange to me that we now have a telephone network within which open-ness (based on open source and open standards) is an integral part. Of course the true nature of the telephone network is more of a regulated network infrastructure incorporating isolated islands of open-ness but even that feels a world away from the closed and heavily controlled nature of the BT network in the 80's and 90's when even manufacturers (let alone home users) could not easily change the code in their devices without considering the impact on their certification status.

Of course open source and open standards are here to stay since they offer the opportunity to accelerate product development and should therefore be welcomed. I wonder if the product managers in charge of the BT Home Hub are thinking the same way?