Introduction
Welcome to ‘Internet Service Provider Review UK’ (ISPr), an independent source of ISP news, listings, reviews, discussion and 'ISP Complaints'. The database of providers can be found under our ‘Listings’ section (Submit Changes). Those seeking to promote their services can ‘Advertise’ and we have a ‘Links’ page for similar sites. Readers seeking info. about website hosting providers should visit our sister site, Host-Review.co.uk.
Latest Reader Reviews
| ISP Name: BT | Date: May 12th, 2008 | Author: chris2618 | Rating:  |
| ISP Name: Be | Date: May 10th, 2008 | Author: louisbs | Rating: |
| ISP Name: Fast4 | Date: May 10th, 2008 | Author: sbsmith1951 | Rating:   |
| ISP Name: Tiscali | Date: May 10th, 2008 | Author: mad.scot.man | Rating: |
| ISP Name: TitanADSL | Date: May 10th, 2008 | Author: mad.scot.man | Rating: |
News
News Categories: General (Default) | Dialup | DSL (ADSL etc.) | Cable/FTTx | Satellite | Wireless | IPTV | VoIP
13 May, 2008 - 8:48 AM
ZyXEL is offering £39 cash back on its P660HWP Super G+ Wireless ADSL Modem Routers and NBG318S Super G+ Cable Routers when purchased before 30th June 2008.
The routers offer wireless speeds of up to 125Mbps, 4 standard wired ethernet connections and in-built 200Mbps HomePlug (uses your homes existing power cables to make a local area network).
Further details can be found here:
http://www.zyxel.co.uk/cashback
The routers offer wireless speeds of up to 125Mbps, 4 standard wired ethernet connections and in-built 200Mbps HomePlug (uses your homes existing power cables to make a local area network).
Further details can be found here:
http://www.zyxel.co.uk/cashback
13 May, 2008 - 8:39 AM
In a surprise twist the Financial Times reports that Tiscali's board has rejected a bid of £550m by The Carphone Warehouse (TalkTalk, AOL) for its UK Internet business, leading to Carphone being excluded from its shortlist and second round of bidding!
Tiscali had hoped to get £800m and it's understood that six other companies have lodged their interest with the UK and Italian Internet giant, including both Vodafone and BSkyB. Mario Rosso, Tiscali's chief executive, is now charged with negotiating a final shortlist.
The report indicates that Tiscali may have already had interest exceeding Carphone's £550m figure, although that in itself does not fully explain the board’s decision; though the public nature of its approach might not have been appropriate. Meanwhile BT, Fast-web and Virgin Media are also thought to have interest, though that has yet to be officially confirmed.
Meanwhile Tiscali has just released its latest results to Q1-2008, which revealed that it had 1,875,000 UK broadband subscribers (see our 'Top 10' page for a comparison):
Tiscali had hoped to get £800m and it's understood that six other companies have lodged their interest with the UK and Italian Internet giant, including both Vodafone and BSkyB. Mario Rosso, Tiscali's chief executive, is now charged with negotiating a final shortlist.
The report indicates that Tiscali may have already had interest exceeding Carphone's £550m figure, although that in itself does not fully explain the board’s decision; though the public nature of its approach might not have been appropriate. Meanwhile BT, Fast-web and Virgin Media are also thought to have interest, though that has yet to be officially confirmed.
Meanwhile Tiscali has just released its latest results to Q1-2008, which revealed that it had 1,875,000 UK broadband subscribers (see our 'Top 10' page for a comparison):
The ADSL users acquired at 31 March 2008 are about 390,000 compared to 31 March 2007
(+46,000 during the quarter) reaching 1,875,000 users, of which 780,000 direct customers, and about 830,000 customers subscribed to dual play services. Broadband market share at 31 March 2008 has remained constant at roughly 12%.
The network coverage in unbundling in the United Kingdom at 31 March 2008 is equal to 850 sites (55% of lines). The average ARPU for broadband services in UK is equal to EUR 29 per month in line with the objectives of the plan.
(+46,000 during the quarter) reaching 1,875,000 users, of which 780,000 direct customers, and about 830,000 customers subscribed to dual play services. Broadband market share at 31 March 2008 has remained constant at roughly 12%.
The network coverage in unbundling in the United Kingdom at 31 March 2008 is equal to 850 sites (55% of lines). The average ARPU for broadband services in UK is equal to EUR 29 per month in line with the objectives of the plan.
13 May, 2008 - 8:28 AM
UK ISP Eclipse Internet (KCOM) has today launched a new range of broadband services that can be tailored by customers to suit their individual online needs. Subscribers will be able to use the ISPs control panel to select how much traffic priority to give web browsing, email, peer-to-peer (p2p), FTP, VPN and gaming.
The new flexibility is being introduced to both business and consumer services, with prices starting from £16.95 and £9.95 (special offer for the first three months, £13.95 thereafter) per month respectively:
The residential packages themselves break down roughly as follows (only the key features are listed, please see Eclipse's site for more details):
Home Lite - £9.95* Per Month (£13.95)
Up to 8Mbps
1GB Usage Allowance
£47 Setup Fee
18 Month Contract
50MB Webspace
Static IP
Anti-Virus/SPAM Protection
Home Select - £17.95
Up to 8Mbps
10GB Usage Allowance
FREE Setup Fee
FREE Router Modem
12 Month Contract
100MB Webspace
Static IP
Anti-Virus/SPAM Protection
Home Pro - £29.95
Up to 8Mbps
50GB Usage Allowance
FREE Setup Fee
FREE Wireless Router Modem
12 Month Contract
100MB Webspace
Static IP
Anti-Virus/SPAM Protection
If you're having a new connection on a one-month contract basis, there is a set-up fee of £47. You don't pay a set-up fee if you choose a 12-month contract option.
The new flexibility is being introduced to both business and consumer services, with prices starting from £16.95 and £9.95 (special offer for the first three months, £13.95 thereafter) per month respectively:
Mark Thomas, Head of Sales and Marketing at Eclipse, said: “We believe these services will provide our customers with an unparalleled online experience. For the first time, broadband users will be able to customise their service to suit their usage – so home workers can optimise their broadband to achieve the best possible connection to their company VPN, for example, while online gamers can prioritise gaming over other applications.
The inclusive usage limits mean customers pay only for what they use, which also allows us to offer much faster broadband than is achievable with unlimited services.
In developing these services we’ve taken account of customer feedback and general online trends, so we’re anticipating a very positive response from the market.”
The inclusive usage limits mean customers pay only for what they use, which also allows us to offer much faster broadband than is achievable with unlimited services.
In developing these services we’ve taken account of customer feedback and general online trends, so we’re anticipating a very positive response from the market.”
The residential packages themselves break down roughly as follows (only the key features are listed, please see Eclipse's site for more details):
Home Lite - £9.95* Per Month (£13.95)
Up to 8Mbps
1GB Usage Allowance
£47 Setup Fee
18 Month Contract
50MB Webspace
Static IP
Anti-Virus/SPAM Protection
Home Select - £17.95
Up to 8Mbps
10GB Usage Allowance
FREE Setup Fee
FREE Router Modem
12 Month Contract
100MB Webspace
Static IP
Anti-Virus/SPAM Protection
Home Pro - £29.95
Up to 8Mbps
50GB Usage Allowance
FREE Setup Fee
FREE Wireless Router Modem
12 Month Contract
100MB Webspace
Static IP
Anti-Virus/SPAM Protection
If you're having a new connection on a one-month contract basis, there is a set-up fee of £47. You don't pay a set-up fee if you choose a 12-month contract option.
12 May, 2008 - 1:25 PM
The founder of the Carphone Warehouse (AOL, TalkTalk), Charles Dunstone, has confirmed that a bid of £550m is being made for rival ISP Tiscali UK. Tiscali is known to be reviewing any interest today and others may well have lodged their own offers, although there are no further details at present. Typically the offer only appears to be for Tiscali’s UK wing and not the group as a whole, which would have included its Italian division. More @ Techwatch.
12 May, 2008 - 8:47 AM
UK ISP Plusnet (BT) has reported that the day after Grand Theft Auto IV's release saw two of the busiest ever hours for online gaming (multiplayer). The results are hardly surprising; with initial reports suggesting that the game sold nearly 1m copies within the first week!
Microsoft's XBox 360 console uses a somewhat questionable P2P method to manage multiplayer, which is more prone to latency (lag) and connectivity problems than server-client methods. This can also play havoc with the Traffic Management systems used by some ISPs, though Plusnet wisely made sure that GTA4 was identified prior to release:
PlusNet reports that up to 90,000 of its customers were tagged as gaming on Wednesday, which is a relatively normal number. The ISP notes that this figure will include all gaming traffic as well as small amounts of background noise, such as pings and port scans, which can also be detected as gaming. The full report can be found on Plusnet’s Community Site.
Microsoft's XBox 360 console uses a somewhat questionable P2P method to manage multiplayer, which is more prone to latency (lag) and connectivity problems than server-client methods. This can also play havoc with the Traffic Management systems used by some ISPs, though Plusnet wisely made sure that GTA4 was identified prior to release:
Grand Theft Auto IV was released on 29th April, looking at our reports, gaming traffic on the 29th was roughly in line with the previous Tuesday; there was no noticeable increase in traffic. This may well be because a lot of people bought it online and didn’t receive it until the following day or those that did get it decided to play it offline rather than online that first evening.
The early hours of Wednesday [30th] morning (4am to 7am) saw an increase in gaming traffic of between 15% and 35% compared with the Wednesday before. Wednesday morning saw the biggest increase in usage with up to 65% more gaming traffic per hour than the previous week. Usage during the rest of the day saw an increase of around 30 to 40%.
Comparing that instead to Tuesday and usage across most of Wednesday was up to 50% higher.
The busiest hour for gaming was 8pm to 9pm on 30th April, followed closely by 9pm to 10pm. In fact the 8 to 9pm hour was actually the busiest hour for gaming in the past 6 months (and 9 to 10pm the second busiest) in terms of usage and very probably the busiest hour we’ve ever seen for gaming. The previous highest hour was 9 to 10pm on 4th November 2007, 8 to 9pm on 30th April beat that by almost 30%.
To add a bit more perspective, gaming accounted for approximately 7.6% of all downloads between 8pm to 9pm on 30th April, we’d normally expect to see between 3.5% and 5% be gaming around that time of day. (It was about 7.1% for 9 to 10pm).
The early hours of Wednesday [30th] morning (4am to 7am) saw an increase in gaming traffic of between 15% and 35% compared with the Wednesday before. Wednesday morning saw the biggest increase in usage with up to 65% more gaming traffic per hour than the previous week. Usage during the rest of the day saw an increase of around 30 to 40%.
Comparing that instead to Tuesday and usage across most of Wednesday was up to 50% higher.
The busiest hour for gaming was 8pm to 9pm on 30th April, followed closely by 9pm to 10pm. In fact the 8 to 9pm hour was actually the busiest hour for gaming in the past 6 months (and 9 to 10pm the second busiest) in terms of usage and very probably the busiest hour we’ve ever seen for gaming. The previous highest hour was 9 to 10pm on 4th November 2007, 8 to 9pm on 30th April beat that by almost 30%.
To add a bit more perspective, gaming accounted for approximately 7.6% of all downloads between 8pm to 9pm on 30th April, we’d normally expect to see between 3.5% and 5% be gaming around that time of day. (It was about 7.1% for 9 to 10pm).
PlusNet reports that up to 90,000 of its customers were tagged as gaming on Wednesday, which is a relatively normal number. The ISP notes that this figure will include all gaming traffic as well as small amounts of background noise, such as pings and port scans, which can also be detected as gaming. The full report can be found on Plusnet’s Community Site.
08 May, 2008 - 1:33 PM
Virgin Media has partnered up with NETGEAR to offer customized Wireless-G Routers and Adapters with its “M”, “L”, and “XL” cable broadband packages.
Packaged as 'Virgin Media Wireless Routers', NETGEAR’s Wireless-G Router (WGR614) is available for free to new subscribers of “L” and “XL” fiber-optic broadband packages, or for a one-off £40 fee for new subscribers of the “M” package.
NETGEAR’s Wireless-G Router with Built-in ADSL2+ Modem (DG834G) is also available for free for new customers on Virgin Media’s non-cable broadband service through a telephone line. Customers will also be able to purchase respective wireless cards, the NETGEAR Wireless-G PC Card (WG511) and Wireless-G USB 2.0 Adapter (WG111), for £20.
The Wireless-G Router features double-firewall protection (NAT & SPI), WEP, and WPA-PSK wireless security to help shield the network from hacker intrusions, and includes NETGEAR’s Smart Wizard installation software to ensure a user-friendly setup process.
Packaged as 'Virgin Media Wireless Routers', NETGEAR’s Wireless-G Router (WGR614) is available for free to new subscribers of “L” and “XL” fiber-optic broadband packages, or for a one-off £40 fee for new subscribers of the “M” package.
NETGEAR’s Wireless-G Router with Built-in ADSL2+ Modem (DG834G) is also available for free for new customers on Virgin Media’s non-cable broadband service through a telephone line. Customers will also be able to purchase respective wireless cards, the NETGEAR Wireless-G PC Card (WG511) and Wireless-G USB 2.0 Adapter (WG111), for £20.
The Wireless-G Router features double-firewall protection (NAT & SPI), WEP, and WPA-PSK wireless security to help shield the network from hacker intrusions, and includes NETGEAR’s Smart Wizard installation software to ensure a user-friendly setup process.
08 May, 2008 - 9:28 AM
Virgin Media has reported its latest first quarter 2008 results today, which saw the operators broadband subscriber base inch forwards from 3,701,200 at the end of 2007 to 3,781,800 now.
The bulk of this increase came from Virgin's cable based broadband platform, while those on its Virgin.net ADSL side reduced from 287,300 at the end of 2007 to 279,500. This loss of 7,800 subscribers could perhaps be contributed to the horrendous service problems customers experienced on their ADSL platform late last year.
It's still too early to know whether the Phorm controversy will have any appreciable impact upon Virgin's broadband subscription figures. The issue only truly began to rear its ugly head through April and has thus missed impacting Q1. Please see our 'Top 10 ISPs' page for a run down of subscriber figures by provider.
The bulk of this increase came from Virgin's cable based broadband platform, while those on its Virgin.net ADSL side reduced from 287,300 at the end of 2007 to 279,500. This loss of 7,800 subscribers could perhaps be contributed to the horrendous service problems customers experienced on their ADSL platform late last year.
Our strategic priorities are to lead the next generation broadband market in speed and quality and to redefine the mid-market TV experience through on-demand. With respect to broadband, our 4Mb to 10Mb upgrade program is underway and we plan to launch 50Mb later this year.
Broadband growth continues and the percentage of customers on our top 20Mb tier continues to grow. We have also significantly enhanced our TV offering with the launch of BBC iPlayer. Both subscriber growth and VOD usage remain strong.
Broadband growth continues and the percentage of customers on our top 20Mb tier continues to grow. We have also significantly enhanced our TV offering with the launch of BBC iPlayer. Both subscriber growth and VOD usage remain strong.
It's still too early to know whether the Phorm controversy will have any appreciable impact upon Virgin's broadband subscription figures. The issue only truly began to rear its ugly head through April and has thus missed impacting Q1. Please see our 'Top 10 ISPs' page for a run down of subscriber figures by provider.
08 May, 2008 - 9:12 AM
NYnet, which was recently awarded a £42.4m Wide Area Network (WAN) broadband contract by North Yorkshire County Council (here), has issued an update on its progress and announced the services launch:
NYnet was formed in March 2007 as a public sector controlled private limited company. The company received over £5m of start-up funding from both regional development agency Yorkshire Forward (£4 Million) and the European Union (£1.1 Million).
‘NYnet’ provides high-speed backhaul infrastructure to 12 Points of Presence in BT Exchanges throughout North Yorkshire, and has undertaken the challenge of stimulating North Yorkshire’s economic growth. The company will do this by providing a high-speed backhaul broadband infrastructure, to enable public and private sector service providers to deliver more advanced services to the citizens of North Yorkshire.
NYnet intends to overcome the issue of rural/coastal disadvantage in terms of broadband and connectivity. This carrier class core and access network offers an exciting proposition for service providers wishing to make an early impact on the expanding markets opened up by next generation broadband services.
The unique commercial enterprise is a collaboration between North Yorkshire County Council, Yorkshire Forward and the European Union. There is potential for grant incentives to Service Providers wishing to establish a presence in the region.
The public and private sector commercial venture was created to provide a communications network capable of delivering multiple high quality services to citizens, business and public sector bodies in North Yorkshire.
The end-to-end architecture incorporates quality of service, resilient core and cost effective wholesale access. NYnet will also offer tiered service level agreements to service providers, with guarantees on bandwidth, quality of service and latency, plus other key service parameters. The collaboration of public sector and private enterprise in this venture creates a major opportunity to meet the challenge of ensuring a socially inclusive approach to all North Yorkshire citizens.
David Cullen, NYnet Chief Executive, said: “The NYnet offering provides service providers with a cost-effective option to tap into this affluent region. With a population of over 600,000, number of businesses in the region of 50,000, a talented workforce and a number of development sites available, there is an excellent business case for investment and growth. As well as being unique in the UK, the NYnet offering is seen as one of the most ground breaking technology-based initiatives in Europe and is being watched with interest.”
Cullen continued: “Following the ADSL enablement of all of the remaining exchanges in North Yorkshire, the region now has a broadband take-up rate that is higher than the national average.
The region offers an excellent basis for relocation, with supported investment packages, excellent transport infrastructure, superb quality of life and rapidly evolving clusters in the creative media, digital and bioscience sectors.”
NYnet intends to overcome the issue of rural/coastal disadvantage in terms of broadband and connectivity. This carrier class core and access network offers an exciting proposition for service providers wishing to make an early impact on the expanding markets opened up by next generation broadband services.
The unique commercial enterprise is a collaboration between North Yorkshire County Council, Yorkshire Forward and the European Union. There is potential for grant incentives to Service Providers wishing to establish a presence in the region.
The public and private sector commercial venture was created to provide a communications network capable of delivering multiple high quality services to citizens, business and public sector bodies in North Yorkshire.
The end-to-end architecture incorporates quality of service, resilient core and cost effective wholesale access. NYnet will also offer tiered service level agreements to service providers, with guarantees on bandwidth, quality of service and latency, plus other key service parameters. The collaboration of public sector and private enterprise in this venture creates a major opportunity to meet the challenge of ensuring a socially inclusive approach to all North Yorkshire citizens.
David Cullen, NYnet Chief Executive, said: “The NYnet offering provides service providers with a cost-effective option to tap into this affluent region. With a population of over 600,000, number of businesses in the region of 50,000, a talented workforce and a number of development sites available, there is an excellent business case for investment and growth. As well as being unique in the UK, the NYnet offering is seen as one of the most ground breaking technology-based initiatives in Europe and is being watched with interest.”
Cullen continued: “Following the ADSL enablement of all of the remaining exchanges in North Yorkshire, the region now has a broadband take-up rate that is higher than the national average.
The region offers an excellent basis for relocation, with supported investment packages, excellent transport infrastructure, superb quality of life and rapidly evolving clusters in the creative media, digital and bioscience sectors.”
NYnet was formed in March 2007 as a public sector controlled private limited company. The company received over £5m of start-up funding from both regional development agency Yorkshire Forward (£4 Million) and the European Union (£1.1 Million).
08 May, 2008 - 9:03 AM
UK ISP NewNet has reported successfully testing a new bonded broadband solution that is capable of delivering speeds of up to 40Mbps over the providers unbundled (LLU) platform.
The service bonds the lines together and uses a special router designed by ZyXEL Communications that was shipped to NewNet for the first trials in this country. Following the successful testing of the service the launch will take place in May this year:
It's not completely clear which DSL derivative is being used for the service, although we suspect that it is ADSL2+.
The service bonds the lines together and uses a special router designed by ZyXEL Communications that was shipped to NewNet for the first trials in this country. Following the successful testing of the service the launch will take place in May this year:
Lee Marsden, ZyXEL Communications Sales Director said: "ZyXEL is delighted to be working in partnership with NewNet, assisting their product development and helping them to open up new ADSL services on their LLU enabled exchanges."
Peter Coates-Buglear, CEO, NewNet plc commented: “This service will be unique in it's capability for 'plug and play' bonded service, no other units we looked at were this easy to use. We are pleased that several months of hard work and liaison with ZyXEL and other suppliers has resulted in a new service that we will roll out on our LLU enabled exchanges. The 40Meg service is yet another example of NewNet pushing the boundaries and setting new standards for service delivery.”
Peter Coates-Buglear, CEO, NewNet plc commented: “This service will be unique in it's capability for 'plug and play' bonded service, no other units we looked at were this easy to use. We are pleased that several months of hard work and liaison with ZyXEL and other suppliers has resulted in a new service that we will roll out on our LLU enabled exchanges. The 40Meg service is yet another example of NewNet pushing the boundaries and setting new standards for service delivery.”
It's not completely clear which DSL derivative is being used for the service, although we suspect that it is ADSL2+.
08 May, 2008 - 8:35 AM
The Carphone Warehouse (AOL, TalkTalk) has sold half of its retailing business share to Best Buy USA for £1.1bn, potentially freeing up enough cash to help it acquire rival ISP Tiscali UK and reduce some of its debt. Best Buy is the world’s largest consumer electronics retailer, playing host to 150,000 staff, annual sales of over £20bn and a 20% US market share.
The two have worked closely together in the past, with a November 2006 partnership helping Best Buy to launch the Best Buy Mobile brand state side. The venture also brought a home computer service business to the UK under the Geek Squad brand in 2007.
Best Buy will now join forces with The Carphone Warehouse to create a European consumer electronics business. It's important to recognise that Best Buy has not brought any share of Carphone's ISP business, just the retail/distribution side.
The two have worked closely together in the past, with a November 2006 partnership helping Best Buy to launch the Best Buy Mobile brand state side. The venture also brought a home computer service business to the UK under the Geek Squad brand in 2007.
Best Buy will now join forces with The Carphone Warehouse to create a European consumer electronics business. It's important to recognise that Best Buy has not brought any share of Carphone's ISP business, just the retail/distribution side.
07 May, 2008 - 2:38 PM
Juniper Research has predicted that up to 12% of the global DSL (ADSL) broadband installed base will be substituted by WiMAX (802.16e) wireless services come 2013, with the Far East leading with over one fifth of the 47m subscribers.
The study also explored how WiMAX is well suited to rapid deployment in the many underserved areas, not only in developing areas, but also in developed countries:
It's predicted that the annual fixed WiMAX global market size will exceed 13m subscribers by 2013. Meanwhile WiMAX has failed to make much of a dent in the UK, where it remains very much a niche technology.
Naturally this situation could change if one or more of the major mobile phone operators decided to adopt WiMAX in place of rival technologies for future 'Mobile Broadband' services, although most appear to be undecided.
The study also explored how WiMAX is well suited to rapid deployment in the many underserved areas, not only in developing areas, but also in developed countries:
Report author Howard Wilcox said: "WiMAX will be an attractive offer in areas where there are no wired networks, and in areas where the existing DSL speed is suboptimal. WiMAX will solve the broadband access problem for users located at the fringes of DSL coverage. This is in fact the case in a number of developed nations such as UK, USA, Ireland and Scandinavia, and WiMAX network operators are deploying networks to address this market need. Additionally in developing countries - such as India - network operators are aiming to provide basic connectivity.”
It's predicted that the annual fixed WiMAX global market size will exceed 13m subscribers by 2013. Meanwhile WiMAX has failed to make much of a dent in the UK, where it remains very much a niche technology.
Naturally this situation could change if one or more of the major mobile phone operators decided to adopt WiMAX in place of rival technologies for future 'Mobile Broadband' services, although most appear to be undecided.
07 May, 2008 - 2:25 PM
France Telecom's latest quarterly results appear to contradict recent information from Orange (news), highlighting instead a continued decline in UK broadband ADSL subscribers to just 1.107 million.
This compares with 1,142,000 in Q3 last year and 1,138,000 in Q4, which marks the operator’s second quarterly decrease, accounting for roughly 31,000 lost customers in the three months to the end of March 2008!
Thankfully Orange's 'Mobile Broadband' (3G/HSPA) services appear to be having a better time of it, totting up over 8.2 million customers in France and 2 million in the UK.
This compares with 1,142,000 in Q3 last year and 1,138,000 in Q4, which marks the operator’s second quarterly decrease, accounting for roughly 31,000 lost customers in the three months to the end of March 2008!
In the United Kingdom, the growth in revenues of ADSL broadband partially offset the decline in revenues from narrow-band Internet and portals. ADSL lines sold unbundled grew strongly accounting for 37% of total ADSL lines at 31 March 2008, up 16 points from 21% a year earlier. The number of ADSL subscribers was 1.107 million at 31 March 2008, up 1.1% compared with 31 March 2007.
Thankfully Orange's 'Mobile Broadband' (3G/HSPA) services appear to be having a better time of it, totting up over 8.2 million customers in France and 2 million in the UK.
07 May, 2008 - 1:31 PM
Ofcom has today published its third Technology Research Programme report - 'Tomorrow's Wireless World', which typically covers all things wireless. However, hidden deep within the text we found a little snippet of information about land-line broadband services and Fibre To The Cabinet (FTTC) technology.
Three very specific paragraphs refer to the regulators investigation into the theoretical capacity limits of existing copper networks, which concludes that the upper limit for a FTTC based broadband connection is 50Mbps (we assume using some form of DSL for the home link):
FTTC technology is often promoted as one of several potential next-generation home broadband solutions, which could bring faster speeds directly to your local exchange cabinet. From there some form of DSL would be required to reach your home because the cost of completely replacing this final copper wire is often deemed too prohibitive for full Fibre To The Home (FTTH) deployment.
Ofcom does not state which technology would manage the home link, although we can exclude ADSL2+ as it is only capable of delivering up to 24Mbps. VDSL2+ is a much more likely candidate and capable of the promised rate, albeit only under the most ideal circumstances.
Three very specific paragraphs refer to the regulators investigation into the theoretical capacity limits of existing copper networks, which concludes that the upper limit for a FTTC based broadband connection is 50Mbps (we assume using some form of DSL for the home link):
Whilst there are no definitive indications of whether consumers will want significantly higher speeds, we are seeing evidence of increasing use of IPTV and other bandwidth hungry audio visual applications. This begs the question of when the current copper network would be unlikely to meet the expectations of the majority of UK consumers.
To give some insight, we commissioned a study based on an idealised environment that does not reflect all the complexities of the current underlying network. This abstraction enabled us consider the theoretical capacity limits of copper networks and set an upper bound for broadband data rates that could be achievable across copper. Given the important relationship of distance to data rate, we based our model on information on cable lengths from a real network.
We concluded that, in our idealised environment, capacities can further improve, compared to today’s deployments. We found that if the upstream modem is hosted in the exchange, households within 2km of the exchange (approximately 18% of the total number of households) could, in theory, receive data rates above 50Mbit/s. If the upstream modem is moved closer to the customer premises and into the street cabinet, then almost 100% of households are within 2km of the street cabinet and could, theoretically, expect a data rate of 50Mbit/s.
These results are theoretical and do not reflect what could be achieved in practise. Data rates experienced by end users depend not only on the distance between the customer premises and the exchange but also on home wiring and interference at the exchange, cabinet and in the home. In the real world there are different providers with different equipment sharing the exchange, and perhaps the cabinet, and therefore impacting performance. Nevertheless the real value of this study is to suggest an upper limit, given all technical progress possible, of 50Mbits, with fibre to the cabinet.
To give some insight, we commissioned a study based on an idealised environment that does not reflect all the complexities of the current underlying network. This abstraction enabled us consider the theoretical capacity limits of copper networks and set an upper bound for broadband data rates that could be achievable across copper. Given the important relationship of distance to data rate, we based our model on information on cable lengths from a real network.
We concluded that, in our idealised environment, capacities can further improve, compared to today’s deployments. We found that if the upstream modem is hosted in the exchange, households within 2km of the exchange (approximately 18% of the total number of households) could, in theory, receive data rates above 50Mbit/s. If the upstream modem is moved closer to the customer premises and into the street cabinet, then almost 100% of households are within 2km of the street cabinet and could, theoretically, expect a data rate of 50Mbit/s.
These results are theoretical and do not reflect what could be achieved in practise. Data rates experienced by end users depend not only on the distance between the customer premises and the exchange but also on home wiring and interference at the exchange, cabinet and in the home. In the real world there are different providers with different equipment sharing the exchange, and perhaps the cabinet, and therefore impacting performance. Nevertheless the real value of this study is to suggest an upper limit, given all technical progress possible, of 50Mbits, with fibre to the cabinet.
FTTC technology is often promoted as one of several potential next-generation home broadband solutions, which could bring faster speeds directly to your local exchange cabinet. From there some form of DSL would be required to reach your home because the cost of completely replacing this final copper wire is often deemed too prohibitive for full Fibre To The Home (FTTH) deployment.
Ofcom does not state which technology would manage the home link, although we can exclude ADSL2+ as it is only capable of delivering up to 24Mbps. VDSL2+ is a much more likely candidate and capable of the promised rate, albeit only under the most ideal circumstances.
07 May, 2008 - 10:27 AM
07 May, 2008 - 9:45 AM
It's a well known fact that anecdotal evidence from broadband speed testers often don't give you the full picture of an ISPs network performance. To that end Samknows has come up with a radical new idea, which involves volunteer consumers installing kit in their homes to help more accurately monitor how providers perform:
To that end Sam has launched the 'Performance Monitoring Network', which will deploy small hardware-based monitoring units to volunteers all around the country. The units, which are based off a software modified Linksys WRT54GL router, will perform a series of tests at regular intervals during the day, every day of the year.
The tests themselves go far beyond the usual speed tests, covering everything from latency to web page failure rates:
Presently the service, which has been running since February this year, has managed to install units in the homes of 50 volunteers. Samknows now hope to expand this with a further 200 and those interested can signup here.
However, there are a number of important requirements that people should be mindful of before agreeing to help. These include having a stable broadband connection (not frequently disconnecting), using a router to connect and not being a heavy downloader (+30GB). In addition the units’ tests will download approximately 2GB per month and upload around 500MB, which puts lite users out of the equation.
We welcome Sam's efforts to provide more independent results for seeing the true performance of UK ISPs, which could be of great benefit to all consumers. Further details and requirements can be found in Sam's FAQ, along with some initial results.
"I've long been frustrated by the confusion surrounding broadband performance and it seems I'm not alone," said Sam. "Ofcom is currently working with ISPs to formulate a Code of Practice that will provide consumers with more information at the point of sale on their likely broadband speed. But is it really right for us to expect a free broadband connection to perform as well as a £25 per month one? That's just the problem. We simply do not know how well one ISP performs with respect to another."
To that end Sam has launched the 'Performance Monitoring Network', which will deploy small hardware-based monitoring units to volunteers all around the country. The units, which are based off a software modified Linksys WRT54GL router, will perform a series of tests at regular intervals during the day, every day of the year.
The tests themselves go far beyond the usual speed tests, covering everything from latency to web page failure rates:
- Latency (ICMP based)
- Packet loss (ICMP based)
- DNS query resolution time
- DNS query failure rate
- Web page loading time
- Web page failure rate
- Web based download speed test (HTTP)
- Web based upload speed test (HTTP)
- Non web based download speed test
- Non web based upload speed test
Presently the service, which has been running since February this year, has managed to install units in the homes of 50 volunteers. Samknows now hope to expand this with a further 200 and those interested can signup here.
However, there are a number of important requirements that people should be mindful of before agreeing to help. These include having a stable broadband connection (not frequently disconnecting), using a router to connect and not being a heavy downloader (+30GB). In addition the units’ tests will download approximately 2GB per month and upload around 500MB, which puts lite users out of the equation.
We welcome Sam's efforts to provide more independent results for seeing the true performance of UK ISPs, which could be of great benefit to all consumers. Further details and requirements can be found in Sam's FAQ, along with some initial results.
07 May, 2008 - 9:00 AM
BT has announced the launch of its new 'Total Broadband Anywhere' package, which costs from £23.99 per month (first three months, £29.99 thereafter) and bundles a traditional up to 8Mbps land-line broadband (ADSL) service with an Internet-capable smartphone (BT ToGo) worth around £150.
Customers get a choice of two full-function BT ToGo smartphones – the HTC S620 or S710 – both powered by Microsoft Windows Mobile 6. When in range of a WiFi hotspot, the BT ToGo connects to the Internet at broadband speeds and provides cheaper calls through BT Broadband Talk.
Sadly, when out of WiFi, all you get is a measly 10MB monthly download allowance (£1.50 per extra MB), and the package includes 50 call minutes and 50 texts on any network at any time. Larger minute and text bundle options are also available. However, as a launch promotion BT will offer unlimited GPRS usage for no additional cost until 31st July 2008.
The BT ToGo integrates seamlessly with many other BT Total Broadband services, and is preconfigured with a BT e-mail address, although customers are able to set up other popular email accounts too. In addition, the BT ToGo comes with mobile security software for virus protection.
The BT ToGo boasts a built-in camera for taking photos and video clips, and comes complete with a media player. It also includes BT Snap & Send, which means photos taken with the BT ToGo can be quickly transferred to a personal online BT Digital Vault so they can be safely stored or instantly shared with family and friends.
At home, Broadband Anywhere customers get BT’s premium Option 3 Total Broadband service, including a free, future-proof black wireless Home Hub with Hub Phone, download speeds of up to 8Mbps with unlimited downloads (Fair Usage Policy), online security, free 5GB Digital Vault secure online storage and free 24/7 customer support.
All Broadband Anywhere customers will also automatically join the BT FON WiFi community. Using any wireless device, including the BT ToGo, customers get unlimited WiFi access at more than 82,000 BT FON Hotspots in the UK, a further 190,000 hotspots around the world and over 2,500 BT Openzone hotspots in the UK and Ireland.
There are four packages in all, with the most expensive costing £53.99 per month for the first three months (£59.99 thereafter) and differing on the number of included minutes and texts. Likewise an 18 month minimum contract applies to all options.
Customers get a choice of two full-function BT ToGo smartphones – the HTC S620 or S710 – both powered by Microsoft Windows Mobile 6. When in range of a WiFi hotspot, the BT ToGo connects to the Internet at broadband speeds and provides cheaper calls through BT Broadband Talk.
Sadly, when out of WiFi, all you get is a measly 10MB monthly download allowance (£1.50 per extra MB), and the package includes 50 call minutes and 50 texts on any network at any time. Larger minute and text bundle options are also available. However, as a launch promotion BT will offer unlimited GPRS usage for no additional cost until 31st July 2008.
The BT ToGo integrates seamlessly with many other BT Total Broadband services, and is preconfigured with a BT e-mail address, although customers are able to set up other popular email accounts too. In addition, the BT ToGo comes with mobile security software for virus protection.
The BT ToGo boasts a built-in camera for taking photos and video clips, and comes complete with a media player. It also includes BT Snap & Send, which means photos taken with the BT ToGo can be quickly transferred to a personal online BT Digital Vault so they can be safely stored or instantly shared with family and friends.
At home, Broadband Anywhere customers get BT’s premium Option 3 Total Broadband service, including a free, future-proof black wireless Home Hub with Hub Phone, download speeds of up to 8Mbps with unlimited downloads (Fair Usage Policy), online security, free 5GB Digital Vault secure online storage and free 24/7 customer support.
All Broadband Anywhere customers will also automatically join the BT FON WiFi community. Using any wireless device, including the BT ToGo, customers get unlimited WiFi access at more than 82,000 BT FON Hotspots in the UK, a further 190,000 hotspots around the world and over 2,500 BT Openzone hotspots in the UK and Ireland.
There are four packages in all, with the most expensive costing £53.99 per month for the first three months (£59.99 thereafter) and differing on the number of included minutes and texts. Likewise an 18 month minimum contract applies to all options.
06 May, 2008 - 1:01 PM
Virgin Media has joined forces with Nortel and Juniper Networks to trial a new 40Gbps (details) infrastructure, which was conducted over a 217 mile span of the operator’s current UK 10G network:
The April 2008 trial involved carrying live 40Gbps wavelength traffic over a 350km span on the Virgin Media optical network using Nortel core optical transmission equipment and Juniper Networks T-series core routers with 40Gbps interfaces.
"Our aim for this trial was to ensure we continue to meet the growing capacity needs of the high-speed services we deliver and provide a quality experience for Virgin Media customers," said Daniel Hennessy, director of Technical Architecture, Virgin Media to CNN Money.
"Our strategic suppliers have demonstrated very clearly how existing network assets can be scaled to meet the growth in demand associated with evolving customer behaviour and step changes in the products provided as part of our high-speed broadband proposition. Our optical network will provide a solid foundation for growth as it takes advantage of technology designed to avoid electrical regeneration and where possible reduce the incremental cost of scaling transport capacity."
"Our strategic suppliers have demonstrated very clearly how existing network assets can be scaled to meet the growth in demand associated with evolving customer behaviour and step changes in the products provided as part of our high-speed broadband proposition. Our optical network will provide a solid foundation for growth as it takes advantage of technology designed to avoid electrical regeneration and where possible reduce the incremental cost of scaling transport capacity."
The April 2008 trial involved carrying live 40Gbps wavelength traffic over a 350km span on the Virgin Media optical network using Nortel core optical transmission equipment and Juniper Networks T-series core routers with 40Gbps interfaces.
03 May, 2008 - 8:48 AM
The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITFI) has published a global ranking of broadband enabled countries, which balances cost, speed and household penetration figures to find out how well they all did.
The results placed the UK in 13th position, with an average 'subscriber per household' figure of 0.55 and download speeds touching 2.6Mbps. The typical lowest monthly cost per Mb (Megabit) was also $1.24 (£0.62). This result also meant that the UK came two places above the USA at 15th:
The results placed the UK in 13th position, with an average 'subscriber per household' figure of 0.55 and download speeds touching 2.6Mbps. The typical lowest monthly cost per Mb (Megabit) was also $1.24 (£0.62). This result also meant that the UK came two places above the USA at 15th:
02 May, 2008 - 10:11 AM
The quality of unbundled (LLU) based broadband ISPs appears to be reaching a turning point, with new research suggesting that service quality may finally be heading in the right direction.
BroadbandChoices.co.uk reports that LLU customers are now enjoying higher levels of customer satisfaction, as well as receiving value for money, with 34% reporting that lower prices influenced their decision:
Back in 2006 the situation was very different, with newly unbundled ISPs suffering from all manner of technical and performance problems. However, the satisfaction gap between non-LLU and LLU providers now appears to be evaporating. 14% of UK households in January 2008 found unbundled providers to be better value for money, which compares with -1% at the end of 2006.
Meanwhile 6% felt that unbundled providers offered improved clarity of price and billing over their non-LLU rivals, which compares with -3% at the end of 2006. Download times, after sales support and the speed of service activation all saw similar improvements into positive territory.
However, overall quality and reliability continued to be rated by a negative, though this has seen a significant reduction from -9% at the end of 2006 to -1% in January 2008. Customers of Be/O2 had the greatest proportion of very/fairly satisfied customers at 86%. Surprisingly Tiscali came a close second with 83%, Sky had 81%, Orange and AOL touched 75% and TalkTalk came bottom with 71%.
BroadbandChoices.co.uk reports that LLU customers are now enjoying higher levels of customer satisfaction, as well as receiving value for money, with 34% reporting that lower prices influenced their decision:
Michael Phillips, product director at BroadbandChoices.co.uk, said: “When LLU first rolled out on a large scale, LLU customers were less satisfied on almost every measure compared to the customers of traditional broadband services. Historically, LLU providers have always fallen short when it comes to customer satisfaction, but times are clearly changing as the broadband market becomes more competitive and ISPs strive to retain their existing customers."
Back in 2006 the situation was very different, with newly unbundled ISPs suffering from all manner of technical and performance problems. However, the satisfaction gap between non-LLU and LLU providers now appears to be evaporating. 14% of UK households in January 2008 found unbundled providers to be better value for money, which compares with -1% at the end of 2006.
Meanwhile 6% felt that unbundled providers offered improved clarity of price and billing over their non-LLU rivals, which compares with -3% at the end of 2006. Download times, after sales support and the speed of service activation all saw similar improvements into positive territory.
However, overall quality and reliability continued to be rated by a negative, though this has seen a significant reduction from -9% at the end of 2006 to -1% in January 2008. Customers of Be/O2 had the greatest proportion of very/fairly satisfied customers at 86%. Surprisingly Tiscali came a close second with 83%, Sky had 81%, Orange and AOL touched 75% and TalkTalk came bottom with 71%.
02 May, 2008 - 9:02 AM
Virgin Media has faced staunch criticism over its vague stance on Phorm ever since the controversial advertising company first revealed that it had, "signed agreements to deploy its technology with three major UK ISPs: British Telecom, Talk Talk and Virgin Media."
However, a new update to the operators Webwise (Phorm) Information Page seeks to clarify their position once and for all, albeit still leaving the door open to Phorm’s adoption:
Meanwhile The Register points out that this statement would appear to conflict with one made by Phorm's own CEO, Kent Ertugrul, on 10th April: "We announced exclusive agreements with three major UK ISPs – BT, Talk Talk and Virgin Media, which represent nearly 70 per cent of the UK internet market, to adopt our online advertising platform, the Open Internet Exchange (OIX), and a consumer internet feature, Webwise."
However, a new update to the operators Webwise (Phorm) Information Page seeks to clarify their position once and for all, albeit still leaving the door open to Phorm’s adoption:
Virgin Media has signed a preliminary agreement with Phorm to understand in more detail how this technology works but we have not yet decided if it will be introduced. Webwise is a technically complex application which could be implemented in a number of different ways and it will be some months before we can confirm if the service will be made available to our customers and if so, how and when it would be deployed. Customer concerns around privacy and data protection are (and will remain) an important element of this preliminary evaluation and we will not roll out Webwise unless we are completely satisfied that in our view it complies with applicable data protection and privacy regulations.
It may be that, as part of the evaluation process, we want to test the technology among some of our customers but we are not currently doing so and we will not conduct any such tests without individual customers' prior consent. Moreover, should Virgin Media eventually decide to roll out Webwise, customers will not be forced to use the system.
It may be that, as part of the evaluation process, we want to test the technology among some of our customers but we are not currently doing so and we will not conduct any such tests without individual customers' prior consent. Moreover, should Virgin Media eventually decide to roll out Webwise, customers will not be forced to use the system.
Meanwhile The Register points out that this statement would appear to conflict with one made by Phorm's own CEO, Kent Ertugrul, on 10th April: "We announced exclusive agreements with three major UK ISPs – BT, Talk Talk and Virgin Media, which represent nearly 70 per cent of the UK internet market, to adopt our online advertising platform, the Open Internet Exchange (OIX), and a consumer internet feature, Webwise."
Previews News Stories
May 13 2008
May 12 2008
May 10 2008
May 9 2008
May 7 2008
May 12 2008
May 10 2008
May 9 2008
1:15 PM - H2O NOT Ignoring 100Mbps for Northampton
May 8 2008May 7 2008
2:25 PM - Orange Tops 1.107m Broadband Subscribers
Copyright © 1999 to Present - ISPreview.co.uk - All Rights Reserved (Terms, Privacy Policy & Website Rules).