May 5, 2002 - May 10, 2002
News - May 10,2002
Telewest Angers Shareholders
By:mark.j @ 2:37:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] So far it hasn't been the best of days for the UKs second largest cable operator and things are about to get worse.
Apparently Telewest is now facing a shareholder revolt after it emerged that four executives were paid £690,000 in bonuses last year, this despite the serious debt problems:
During 2001 shares in the troubled cable company fell by around 40 per cent, while pre-tax losses rose by 63 per cent. The revelation is expected to provoke lively debate at the company's annual meeting on 11 June, reports the FT.
Telewest is currently struggling to reduce around £5bn in debt and may have to agree to a debt for equity swap in the next 12 months in an attempt to survive.
More @ Silicon. |
Nildram ISP Launch Lobsterpot Unmetered
By:mark.j @ 9:01:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] It looks as if the popular broadband ISP, Nildram, is set to launch itself into the unmetered dialup market with Lobsterpot, it's new 24/7 narrowband modem/ISDN service:
Catch the tide of change with lobsterpot!
Nildram, one of the UK's leading Internet Service Providers, have today announced the launch of a brand new service - lobsterpot.
Choosing a service provider has become more and more difficult in these days of widely varying tariffs and service levels... Nildram believe they have the answer with a Flat Rate Access service called lobsterpot - a new brand under the Nildram umbrella that will bring the traditional Nildram virtues of high performance, reliability and customer service to a wider audience, via a Flat Rate Access platform.
lobsterpot is targeted at second and third generation Internet users who have become dissatisfied with their existing provider - but it will also appeal to new users looking for a user-friendly Internet experience that does what it says on the tin (or, in this case, Lobster!)
At launch, the service provides a single Dial-Up connection (including 64Kbps ISDN), 5Mb of webspace - including support for Microsoft FrontPage, 5 POP3 e-mail accounts and an online e-mail interface. Being Flat Rate, lobsterpot provides access, with no Internet call charges, for only £14.50 per month - inclusive of VAT.
Only available On-Line, Lobsterpot is simple to set up via the online portal at www.lobsterpot.net.uk and it won't take over the users computer either, unlike certain ISP's dial software. The idea is to keep it simple and concentrate on quality.
Martin Jowett, Nildram's Sales and Marketing Director comments: "Dial access still meets the needs of many Internet users: what most are looking for is a basic, good quality, access service they can rely upon - not as easy as it sounds. With a track record of delivering high quality service and support, we are pleased to be able to bring the Nildram ethos to the flat rate access market with the launch of lobsterpot."
For further information, take a look at http://www.lobsterpot.net.uk
We often find ourselves wondering how such an otherwise credible ISP could come up with a name like Lobsterpot, but then our heads explode and so it's back to posting news.
Interestingly the website touts this new service as being for “highspeed internet access”, which is a first for 56/64Kbps dialup. |
BTOs Dotmusic Broadband Content
By:mark.j @ 8:53:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The dotmusic service, which was recently purchased by the BTOpenworld ISP, has announced the launch of its new broadband content channel.
On the down side the video for Ant 'n Dec's World Cup song - 'We're on the Ball' - will be available online exclusively through the channel:
Ant n Dec Video Exclusive Launches dotmusic Broadband Channel
England's official world cup song kicks off new channel of best broadband music on the net
The video to Ant 'n Dec's World Cup song - 'We're on the Ball' - will be available online exclusively through dotmusic's new broadband content channel, launched today. The channel () is the first major development for the site following the purchase of dotmusic by BTopenworld in March of this year and will also feature exclusive material from artists such as Fischerspooner, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Busta Rhymes.
The dotmusic broadband channel will include the most recent and up to date music videos for streaming. In addition to Ant 'n Dec's World Cup song, videos available on launch will include the latest singles from Holly Valance and the Chemical Brothers and an exclusive video of the debut solo single from So Solid's Asher D.
Both interviews and footage of live performances will also feature heavily within the channel. These will range from acoustic sessions from artists such as Turin Brakes to concerts and festivals such as Creamfields. In addition, exclusive free downloads will be available including the new Ludacris single, produced by superstar producer, Timbaland. Three live tracks from the newly released special edition of Mercury Rev's All Is Dream album will also be available for download as well as B-sides from the forthcoming A1 and Hundred Reasons singles.
The channel's most unique content will include such gems as Pop Idols' Will, Gareth and Zoe busking in Covent Garden and Irish group Bellefire's recent industry showcase.
Alison Ritchie, CEO BTopenworld, commented:- "The broadband channel brings together some very exciting new content in a very easy to use and comprehensive channel. We're committed to making dotmusic the number one place for broadband music and you can expect much more from us in this area over the next months."
BTopenworld launched a classical music subscription service (BTopenworld Classical) in January 2002, an online games subscription service (Games Domain) in February 2002 and a Sport and Bets site in April 2002. |
Blueyonders 'Usenet Death Penalty'
By:mark.j @ 8:47:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Due to the high levels of SPAM on Telewests blueyonder ISP newsgroup/usenet service the 'Usenet Death Penalty' has been imposed. DigitalSpy reports that the full announcement can be found HERE and the following is a quote from the first half:
You may be aware that, within the Usenet community, there has been a request for discussion as to whether or not to block propagation of newsgroup posts from blueyonder (i.e. issue a Usenet Death Penalty [UDP]).
A UDP issued against blueyonder would result in any newsgroup post you make being blocked by other news providers.
This request for discussion has arisen because of the high volumes of spam originating from the blueyonder network. The vast majority of this spam is not being directly generated by blueyonder customers, but by spammers using poorly configured customer computers as relay agents [proxies].
A UDP has now been issued. As a responsible ISP would, we suspended propagation of newsgroup posts beyond blueyonder with immediate effect.
No postings to news.blueyonder.co.uk will propagate beyond our borders. Postings to news-text.blueyonder.co.uk will currently remain unaffected. We are taking this action to ensure the future quality of the Usenet service that we can provide and believe this is the only responsible action to take.
As you will imagine, we are treating this UDP and spamming issue VERY seriously. We are accelerating our efforts to perform corrective action. During the last few days we have been scanning our network for open NNTP [news] relays and will expand this to cover all types of proxy servers [SOCKS, HTTP, mail] that could be used by third parties to abuse our customers' service. |
BT Update - ADSL Enabled Exchanges
By:mark.j @ 8:40:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] ADSLGuide reports that the latest four exchanges to be enabled with ADSL from the originally announced list of 100 include Burham on Sea, Plympton, Seaford and Southwater.
We can't help but feel that most people thought BT would have been upgrading exchanges far faster than this; it's starting to look like a smoke screen for BT to say that they're still doing something. 18 of the 100 have now been upgraded. |
E-Mail = The Internets Favourite App
By:mark.j @ 8:35:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The latest research from Nielsen NetRatings has reaffirmed the belief that E-Mail is still the Internets main application. 75% of all residential (home) Internet users make use of the technology:
Britain rates email as highly as anywhere with 90% of the online population having used it in the last six months. Other applications listed in the survey lag far behind.
In Britain 16% of web users participate in chat rooms, 35% use instant messaging and 21% listen to web radio.
The Ananova item doesn't report on anything that hasn't been said before under previous research; we doubt E-Mail is likely to be replaced at the top anytime soon. |
News - May 9,2002
EU Invades Personal Privacy
By:mark.j @ 3:28:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] No surprises here, the civil liberties group Statewatch is reporting that EU governments are secretly drawing up snooping laws for the universal surveillance of telecoms:
Telecoms firms and Internet service providers across Europe will be forced to retain all telecommunications traffic data under new legislation that is being secretly written by a number of European governments, according to privacy advocates.
Statewatch, a UK Internet-based organisation that monitors threats to civil liberties within Europe, said on Wednesday that several European governments are deeply committed to bringing in universal surveillance of telecommunications within the European Union, despite strong opposition from the European Parliament.
These governments, Statewatch claims, are secretly drawing up a framework decision that would force the 15 member nations of the EU to bring in new laws that would place all phone calls, emails, faxes and Internet usage under surveillance. The companies affected by the legislation would have to let law enforcement agencies access this data.
Unfortunately ZDNet's item isn't shocking, even our own UK government has plans to retain ISP and telecoms data for an as yet un-finalised period of time.
Sadly we believe that some governments have become complacent and arrogant with the level of trust their voters empower them with and are abusing their powers and position. |
Mac-1 Announce Ethernet Satellite ISP
By:mark.j @ 3:13:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Mac-1 has today announced a new set of broadband satellite ISP services to complement their existing £159 per month offer.
The two new levels of service are set to offer guaranteed 512Kbps and 1,024Kbps download (downstream) speeds, this time using Ethernet technology rather than a DVB card:
Mac-1 Internet managing director Greg Hughes explained: "Many Mac users were interested in our original satellite products until realising a PC gateway was required. This is now no longer the case, and we're expecting great user take-up of our Ethernet version."
The service runs via a satellite dish hooked-up to an Ethernet transceiver offering 10/100 Base-T Ethernet connection to a Mac, hub or AirPort Base Station.
The solution costs £299 per month for the 512Kbps service, and £349 per month for the 1,024Kbps service. Both services support data-bursts of 4,096Kbps. The company is also offering fixed IP-addresses for a one-off charge of £100 per address.
The MacWorld item reports that the service is live now, although it could take up to a month from the initial order for an installation. Mind you it'd probably be cheaper to bribe BT into installing ADSL at your local exchange =). |
08002go Refuses To Offer Unmetered!
By:mark.j @ 3:03:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] 08002Go, which had recently announced its intention to return to the unmetered dialup ISP market, has done a completely u-turn. Today the website reads:
Unfortunately we will no longer be offering the 08002go unmetered service. This is due to a number of ex-customers who have spoilt it for everyone.
Their excuse is less than believable, indeed we've seen next to no comment in the 08002Go forum since their announcement. The land of excuses must be running out of good sentences for the day. Nothing gained and nothing lost.. |
Gov Re-Examines Broadband Policy
By:mark.j @ 2:52:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] As we've already reported, the government intends to shy away from using their future super-regulator, OFCOM, as a means to further push BTs ADSL rollout.
However, they do now intend to take another look at their broadband regulatory policy with a new report to be conducted by the Cabinet Office's Performance and Innovation Unit:
According to the PIU, the new report will review likely broadband developments over the next decade, their importance to the UK's productivity and economic growth, and the challenges they present to the formulation of regulatory policy by the government and new industry über-watchdog OFCOM.
Dubbed "Electronic Networks - Regulatory Challenges for the Next Decade", the project will compare the regulatory experiences of current telecoms watchdog Oftel and equivalent bodies abroad, and study the introduction of new technologies including xDSL and 3G.
Due to be submitted this summer, the project will add to the growing pile of and reviews and recommendations that have come in from the DTI, Oftel, the Office of the e-Envoy, the Treasury, thinktank The Broadband Stakeholders Group and the government's Digital TV Action Plan, but the government and Oftel have stuck to a largely cautious attitude to intervention in the broadband market so far.
While the netimperative.info item may be cause for some hope, we'd still seriously doubt anything truly positive would come of it.
The key areas of pushing BTs ADSL rollout and helping to subsidise it directly would likely be left well alone, much as it has been so far. |
Gio ISP Delay Unmetered ISDN - Again
By:mark.j @ 9:04:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Yet again Gio Internet has been the cause for much frustration after delaying their new dual channel (128Kbps) ISDN packages by another TWO WEEKS! The following was posted on our forum yesterday:
128 Service delayed by two weeks, full details will be available tomorrow.
Rumour has it that the delay could be partly to do with Gio being oversubscribed; although hopefully today’s full update should tell us more. We'll post once it's issued. |
Internet Use Popular With Over 60's
By:mark.j @ 8:59:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The latest research to be carried out by the BTOpenworld ISP has found that Surfing the Internet is now the most popular pastime for the over 60s:
RETIREES GET TO WORK ON THE NET
Surfing the Internet has become the most popular pastime for the over 60s, according to research for BTopenworld.
In retirement, more people are spending time on the Net (83 per cent) than are pursuing other interests/hobbies or travelling. Over 60s with access to the Net send an average of four personal emails a day, not much less than other generations of email users who send an average of 30 per week. The research, which was carried out by BMRB for BTopenworld, found that 45 per cent of women started using the Internet for the first time after stopping work, compared with 37 per cent of men.
Women over 60 are also making better use of Internet access for social purposes, with 35 per cent finding that they have a wider circle of friends since retirement.
The research demonstrates how the Internet has crossed all age boundaries to become an enabler of relationships between friends and family, while offering an enriched lifestyle. Of the 'silver surfers' questioned, 69 per cent felt that they were more open to new experiences, and 42 per cent felt they were more tolerant to the way the world is changing.
Duncan Ingram, senior vice-president at BTopenworld said: "The research reveals conclusively that surfing is not a pastime that is exclusive to a certain age group. It is opening up new possibilities for everyone, not least retired people who have more time to develop new skills, research areas that interest them and keep in touch with friends and family. Many people fear they may be bored or lonely when they retire, but the Internet helps to combat this and this is a message that has clearly resonated among silver surfers." |
Fujitsu's ADSL Line-Card Statement
By:mark.j @ 8:33:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] ADSLGuide has managed to secure a beefy update from Fujitsu regarding the current problems surrounding their broadband ADSL Line Cards (exchange adaptors).
The update itself is more of an explanation/apology piece rather than a physical update on the fix status. We've quoted the last two paragraphs from the update below:
The line card variant in question had not been deployed in very large numbers, and as a result, only a small number of users were affected by the problem - we estimate less than half of one percent of users connected to this equipment.
Fujitsu sincerely regrets any inconvenience caused by these issues to broadband users in the UK and would like to re-assure both end users and service providers of our continued commitment to providing the highest quality DSL solutions. We do believe that remedial action to the issues itemised above was taken extremely quickly, and we have carried out a thorough investigation of our internal procedures in order to verify this to our satisfaction. We have also provided additional personnel to conduct ongoing monitoring and spot checks throughout the network, in an additional troubleshooting capacity. BT has been extremely supportive of Fujitsu throughout the process of solving these technical issues and provided invaluable field data to help trace the root causes. |
New OFCOM Bill Ignores Broadband
By:mark.j @ 8:27:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The recently announced draft Communications Bill, which will ultimately create OFCOM (super-regulator), isn't likely to include any new powers to support the rollout of broadband in the UK:
The decision means there is no chance of the government forcing BT to speed up the rollout of ADSL by compelling it to make broadband available to everyone in the UK, at least not until there are many more broadband users.
The government insists that it can execute its broadband strategy without bringing in new legislation, and believes that the recent boom in broadband take-up is a sign that the market is developing well. "Our strategy involves government and the market working together to roll out broadband as quickly as possible. The Communications Bill won't be used to implement this," a DTI spokesman told ZDNet UK.
The government could have decided to make broadband a "universal service" -- as it suggested doing in the Communications Bill white paper last year. This would have obliged BT, as the UK's incumbent telecoms operator, to make high-speed Internet access available to everyone in the UK for the same price.
Once again the government has lost another chance to better achive their vision of universal broadband, which could now end up widening the digital divide.
Here's hoping that BTs forthcoming 'wholesale' broadband satellite service is a realistic and AFFORDABLE alternative to existing offers from various ISPs, more @ ZDNet. |
Telewest’s New Liberate 1.2 Update
By:mark.j @ 8:20:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] DigitalSpy is reporting that Telewest's broadband division will complete the rollout of its new Liberate 1.2 software, among other set-top box/platform enhancements, by the start of the World Cup (2002):
"Telewest Broadband is now rolling out Liberate 1.2 and other platform enhancements in time for the World Cup. This software enables synchronised linking of interactive content to the TV programme. We are currently in discussions with broadcasters and other content suppliers regarding potential applications and content which will use our enhanced platform to enrich the consumer experience.
Telewest Broadband customers can access these applications by pressing the red button on their remote control. The first event, which will be enhanced on the Telewest Broadband platform, will be the World Cup on the BBC.
This technology will enable enhanced TV applications such as html (text) overlays, voting, choice of audio stream (e.g. alternative commentary), multi-streaming video mosaic (choice of video picture)."
The item also mentions the BBC's involvement and even includes some screenshots of the new software. |
News - May 8,2002
AOL's Connie Mugged
By:ross @ 6:10:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The much-known face of Internet service provider AOL, Connie, real-life actress Rachel Willis, was punched in the face by a mobile phone mugger who struck in broad daylight.
The 26-year-old star managed to hold on to her handbag as her attacker ran off into a nearby housing estate with her phone.
She was on her way home when the assault happened in Kennington, south London at 6.30pm on Tuesday.
The 5ft 11in actress became nationally recognised when she landed the role of Connie, the face of UK Internet service provider AOL, which has 1.8 million customers.
Source: Sky News |
Small Fast24 ISP Service Update
By:mark.j @ 2:47:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The troubled unmetered dialup ISP, Fast24, has posted another short service update on our forums regarding some new dialup details:
Please accept our sincere apologies for the delay, however we have finally managed activate our new ports. They do however have a different telephone number, and therefore you should download and run the following file.
To configure your PC, please go to http://www.fast24.net/downloads/newfast24.ins After a few moments a new window should appear, please select 'Open this file from its current location' (the exact message may vary slightly, depending on your operating system) and then click on 'OK'.
Once completed, you will be able to connect to your FAST24 account using the '@fast24.net' username and password that you were supplied in the previous email.
PLEASE NOTE: When you launch your dial-up connection the telephone number being used should be 186980800800356. It is vital that you check that this is the number being used otherwise you will incur local call rate telephone charges.
Unfortunately while some people have reported success and pleasing results, most appear to be facing yet more engage tones among various other connection problems.
The saga continues, although we're informed that efforts to improve things are continuing. |
Nildram's ADSL ISP Migration Trial
By:mark.j @ 9:29:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] It's been awhile since we last heard anything about Nildram's ADSL ISP migration trial, which is designed to allow broadband users to swap providers.
Thankfully the ISP has today sent us another press release announcing their first success in a long line of requests to migrate an existing ADSL user from their current ISP to Nildram:
Broadband ISP Migration Trial - Nildram's first successes!
Nildram, one of the leading providers of Broadband Access services in the UK, are pleased to announce that they have completed the first of a long line of requests to migrate an existing ADSL user from their current service provider to Nildram.
This trial has been good news for Broadband customers wishing to change their provider, but there has been confusion over which ISPs are actively participating and which are not.
Martin Jowett, sales and marketing director: "As an active participant in the BT Service Provider Migration Trial we are keen to let all existing ADSL users know that they have a real choice even after they have selected their initial provider, with transition taking place with virtually zero interruption in service."
The trial includes all existing BT IPStream Home & Office, BT IPStream 500 and BT IPStream S Series customers and the trial covers all Broadband enabled areas. Any customers wishing to transfer to Nildram, will need to check that their existing provider is also on the trial.
During the trail period the administration fee is waived, but an appropriate charge will be implemented when the service is formally released. Migrating to Nildram also gives customers the opportunity to take advantage of the £22.99 per month (inclusive of VAT) Home500 Lite service.
Iain Ogilvie, Nildram's marketing manager comments: "The first successful migration is something of a milestone for us as we have been requesting a migration path for end users to more easily move between ISPs since BT launched ADSL nearly 2 years ago." He continues, "We have been disappointed by the lack of response to the trial exhibited by a number of ISPs and this has caused frustration and confusion to a number of customers that have approached us to migrate - we hope that this will improve in the future."
Typically Nildram make no mention of which ISP was involved in the first change and clearly shows that ISPs are reluctant to welcome any service that could see some of them loosing customers to cheaper services. |
Aramiska's DigitalTV Broadband ISP
By:mark.j @ 9:21:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Aramiska, one of the better known UK broadband Satellite ISPs, is set to launch a new service using Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) with Return Channel via Satellite to transmit and receive data.
Many should recognise the DVB marker a variant of the technology used to broadcast digital channels to people's homes. Unfortunately the service looks set to retain Aramiska's familiarly high prices.
The broadband offering is pitched at small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Entry-level packages start at £199 per month, and support up to 30 PCs with access speeds ranging from 256Kbps to 2Mbps.
The company said that it would be able to provide services in rural areas even if only one company or individual in an area signs up for the service.
The VNUNet item is unlikely to heighten excitement among residential (home) users, although it's another mark of competition for both BTOpenworld and Tiscali. |
EU Agrees Internet Download Tax
By:mark.j @ 9:11:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] One of the biggest attractions of the Internet is the combination of buying a piece of software and then being able to download it directly without the addition of extra tax.
Now a new tax on digital products downloaded from the internet is being passed to allow European internet firms to trade more fairly with their US rivals:
The EU's Taxation Commissioner says US internet firms levy no taxes from online customers, allowing their goods to be sold more cheaply.
Frits Bolkestein says the new tax rules "will remove the serious competitive handicap which EU firms currently face". The tax will affect all non-European internet businesses selling digital products, including software, videos and music.
US trade authorities say they may lodge a complaint against the new tax at the World Trade Organization.
While the Ananova item reports that this is more to do with the bigger issue of trade between the EU and USA, it's still the individual customers who end up paying. |
Nildram Upgrade ADSL Capacity
By:mark.j @ 9:03:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Nildram have yet again issued a new press release announcing a further upgrade to their central pipe's ADSL capacity:
Nildram upgrade ADSL Central Pipe Capacity
Nildram, one of the UK's leading providers of Broadband ADSL Internet access, have today announced a further upgrade that reflects the popularity of their Broadband ADSL services.
Whilst the Nildram Network is able to support a huge amount of traffic, the number of Broadband ADSL users that can use the service is potentially limited by the connection between BT's ADSL delivery network and Nildram, this connection is referred to by BT as the 'Central Pipe'. Providing that the bandwidth provided by the Central Pipes is sufficient for the number of users, the performance of a Broadband DSL connection is dependant upon their Service Providers core Internet network, this is one of the key reasons why Nildram ADSL users receive a superior quality of service compared with their peers in the Broadband ISP industry.
Adrian Mardlin, Technical Director at Nildram: "We view as a fundamental part of our network management responsibility to closely monitor and trend the usage of our customers - this may seem like an obvious statement to make, but recent press coverage may suggest this hasn't always been the case with some providers" he continues "our ability to balance capacity planning against infrastructure investment is key to offering our customers a cost effective, enjoyable Internet access service"
With this in mind Nildram have announced the expansion of their BT Central Pipe capacity with the implementation of an additional 155Mbps pipe which will go live in the near future. Planning ahead, further pipes will be coming on stream ahead of predicted demand.
Full details of the Nildram Broadband ADSL portfolio can be found on their ADSL specific web site at: http://www.getadsl.co.uk
Iain Ogilvie, Nildram's Marketing Manager comments: "Our 'Central Pipes' are currently running at less than 50% capacity, but we are determined to expand our capacity ahead of predicted growth, as we have always done with our network infrastructure." He goes on to say, "We believe this announcement further reinforces our commitment to providing high quality Broadband services both now, and into the future!"
No doubt this will please many of Nildrams broadband ADSL customers, which is especially good because they’re also one of the cheapest providers. |
OFCOM Communications Bill Revealed
By:mark.j @ 8:58:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Some of you will have caught yesterday’s parliamentary discussion and submission of the new draft Communications Bill, which should eventually form the basis for Oftels replacement - OFCOM.
Unfortunately there's precious little information regarding ISPs, although thankfully it won't try to directly regulate content on the Internet. Oftel has subsequently issued the following press release:
The five regulators that will form the new communications regulator OFCOM have welcomed today’s publication of the Government’s draft Communications Bill. In a joint statement the five regulators said:
"We welcome publication of the draft Communications Bill and the move towards a modern and flexible regulatory framework for the converging communications sector.
The communications industry will benefit from a more flexible approach to regulation, minimising regulatory burdens and providing consistency across all communications networks.
As the new communications regulator, OFCOM will be critical to the success of the new framework. It needs to be a world class regulator that combines the best of all five of the existing regulators."
OFCOM must be ready to start work as soon as powers and responsibilities are transferred to the new organisation.
"The five communications regulators are committed to ensuring a smooth transition to OFCOM, and work is already well advanced in order to achieve this.
There now needs to be a wide-ranging debate on OFCOM's duties, governance and priorities involving industry, consumers and Government. This will ensure that the new framework will help create a dynamic communications industry for the 21st century."
The five regulators that will form OFCOM are the Broadcasting Standards Commission, the ITC, Oftel, the Radio Authority and the Radiocommunications Agency.
http://www.communicationsbill.gov.uk |
News - May 7,2002
Liberty Media To Take Telewest?
By:mark.j @ 3:26:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Once again speculation has mounted that Liberty Media could be about to take control of Telewest, the embattled UK cable operator:
Liberty controls 25 per cent of Telewest and is understood to be planning to buy out bondholders, in hopes of accruing more than half of the firm.
It is thought that Malone will acquire the bonds then convert them into equity as part of a debt-for-shares swap similar to that being undertaken at rival cable operator NTL as a way to manage its £16bn (E 25.6bn) in debt.
Earlier, Malone failed to acquire a stake in NTL, and is now expected to turn his ambitions toward Telewest. City analysts claim Malone will begin negotiations with Telewest chairman Adam Singer within the next two weeks.
The Europemedia item should come as little surprise to those following the various twists and turns surrounding both NTL and Telewest, two of the UKs largest cable operators. It’s one ‘possible’ step closer to a merger. |
PSINet Europe Sale Approved
By:mark.j @ 3:13:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The sale of PSINet Europe has been approved by a US bankruptcy court and is now likely to be sold to an international group of investors:
The deal still needs to be cleared by the European Union although it seems likely that it will get the thumbs-up it needs.
Around 600 people work for PSINet Europe. At this stage it's too early to say whether any jobs will be lost as part of the sale.
Last month an international group of investors, which included ClearBlue Technologies, Israel Corporation, Infinity Holdings and a British financier, offered to buy PSINet Europe for $9.5 million. Last Friday the group won the approval of the US courts.
It remains to be seen whether or not the EU side will approve the sale, although there's little reason for them not to. More @ The Register. |
Gio Internet ISP Imposes New Limit
By:mark.j @ 3:08:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Gio Internet, the NeonHippo reseller that's made a name for itself as one of the cheapest ISPs in the UK, has chosen to make a few key changes.
The recent spate of engage tones, which hit all NH ISPs (that's one of the problems with resold services), may have been one of the reasons for today's change:
Due to excessive usage by customers who should not be on the Gio Universal service we have introduced a temporary 1 hr cut off. This has been necessary for those customers whom are regarded light users and are having difficulty logging on.
As a policy we do not intend to "kick" any customer off from any of our services. In order to maintain the quality the above has been made necessary.
With the imminent launch of the Anytime services with low contention ratio's later this week, this will lesson the burden on Gio Universal.
We also note that the website has now changed and the bold No Restriction' claims appear to have magically vaporised. Gio's primary Universal 24/7 package now also touts itself as being for 'Light Users'.
Thankfully a 2 hour cut off will be installed in the near future (unconfirmed) and their primary package still doesn't limit the number of hours you're on-line or how much data you download. No doubt some customers will still be feeling annoyed at the change. |
e-Government To Cost 800,000 Jobs
By:mark.j @ 2:45:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] It's only logical to assume that replacing a manual service with automation could lead to the loss of jobs. Up until now the government has always claimed that e-Government services would be designed to complement, not replace, existing services.
Despite this the e-envoy, Andrew Pinder, has hinted that putting all services online by 2005 could cost 800,000 public sector employees their jobs:
Pinder's claims, spotted by Steve Ranger of Accountancy Age during last month's Microsoft-sponsored Government Leaders Conference in Seattle, represent something of a blooper. The official line, insofar as there is one, is that the drive to deliver e-government to the UK simply means the provision of web-based services in addition to current ones, not their replacement. Pinder however told delegates that the savings could be achieved by "turning off other channels," which quite clearly does mean replacing current services.
Peter Friedman of support and training site SupportInsight notes a previous pledge from the e-envoy's office that e-government will be supplemental, but it's clearly unsustainable that it will be entirely so, if the great experiment succeeds. Obviously, if for example we're all going to want to deal with the Inland Revenue online, then the Inland Revenue won't be needing all those office. But it must be a worry to Inland Revenue staff that Pinder already seems to have a fairly clear idea about how many of them we won't be needing.
The Register's item will no doubt be of some concern to all those working in such jobs, unfortunately it’s bound to happen sooner or later. |
Omne Highlights Brighter Future
By:mark.j @ 2:37:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Yesterday we reported on how Omne Communications had gone into administration. Today Omne's chief executive, Ian Renshaw, has tried to make a few consoling and positive comments about the situation:
Reiterating that rural broadband provision is a "viable business", Omne's chief executive Ian Renshaw also expressed his belief in the firm's potential if new investment can be secured: "We will work with the administrator to do all we can to continue to deliver our telephone, digital television and broadband Internet service to customers.
We have a tremendous workforce which has delivered significant progress for Omne and the communities in which we operate. We remain hopeful that new funds can be secured to take Omne out of administration and ensure the business continues its progress."
However, if new funding does not materialise, the move will deal another blow to the government's 'Broadband Britain' programme, which aims to create the "most extensive and competitive" broadband market in the G7, and to make high-speed internet access widely available in rural areas.
Unfortunately such financial difficulties aren't uncommon, Omne isn't the first and it won't be the last, yet hopefully it can still be saved. More @ netimperative.info . |
Site Update - Reader Top ISPs
By:mark.j @ 10:03:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] I've fixed the 'Reader Top ISPs' system, which was taken down over the bank holiday following some lengthy server downtime.
Unfortunately the list itself has had to be reset, which isn’t so much of a problem since it’s just over a month since the last reset anyway. You can now vote from fresh again. |
Aramiska's Broadband Satellite ISP
By:mark.j @ 9:55:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Aramiska, one of the UKs better known broadband Satellite ISPs, has today sent us a new press release touting their successful offerings. Note that while we've only just been sent this today, the release itself seems to be from late April last month:
Aramiska boosts sales through resellers in the UK and Ireland
• Resellers in the UK join forces with Aramiska to benefit from unique opportunity
• First customer orders received
Following the successful launch of its services in Europe in February, Aramiska(tm) announces that the first wave of resellers in the UK have joined Aramiska to deliver true two-way Internet connectivity for businesses and organisations that cannot get terrestrial broadband Internet access. Among the resellers joining forces with Aramiska are Prya in Wales, Abacus Systems and Networks in Ireland, Broadband Scotland and Networks Unlimited in England. Initial training has been completed and the first customer orders have been taken.
Businesses and other professional organisations in the UK will benefit from Aramiska's fast, always-on satellite broadband connectivity, providing access to broadband Internet and accelerating their core business processes.
Steve Petrie, CMO of Aramiska says: "Our reseller partners put Aramiska in a unique position to provide our broadband services to the SME, corporate and the public sector markets regardless of their location in the UK and Ireland."
Aramiska offers resellers a substantial share in this multi billion-euro market through participation in the early phase of broadband connectivity growth. "There is no need for high investments in infrastructure, making the solution profitable for resellers and their customers," Philippe Bodart, CEO of Aramiska adds.
The roll-out of terrestrial broadband services in many countries has stopped or has been severely delayed. This creates new opportunities, with the speed and coverage of satellite. Market research indicates some eight million small and medium-sized companies in Europe do not, nor will have access to terrestrial broadband Internet.
Aramiska offers these businesses a full range of broadband service packages. Entry-level packages start at £99 per month and support up to 30 PCs. High-end packages that include guaranteed bandwidth and support for up to 100 PCs are also available. All packages include full ISP services such as Web Caching, Web Space, Mail Server and 24-hour customer support. To increase security, firewalls are placed at both the customer's premises and Aramiska's Internet Data Centre. |
Clara.net Ignore Existing ADSL Users
By:mark.j @ 9:28:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Just over a month ago we ran a small news item on how all of Clara.net's existing 'ENGINEER INSTALLED' (Note: NOT, repeat, NOT Self-Install) broadband customers weren't to see the recent price discounts passed on to them.
In short older customers are being forced to pay £49.99 per month, this despite BT also cutting the price on older methods. This leaves Clara.net as one of the only, if not THE only, mainstream ISP not to discount the monthly fee for older delivery methods.
It's fair to say that associated customers were less than pleased and complained to us in their droves. There's no reason for Clara.net to do this, it's just plain nasty.
Typically we didn't want to go jumping about in the air without discussing the situation with Clara.net first and after over a month our reply finally came, this time from Nick Wells:
I'm afraid in this instance I'm not in a position to comment on your question.
We couldn't quite believe it, up until now Clara.net have always been very helpful when we had customer concerns that needed addressing. Typically we tried again, only to be told:
I'm afraid the buck stops with me, and I'm sorry, but it's just not something I wish to comment on.
Clearly there's more going on than meets the eye and it's difficult for us to fully grasp the problem without more detail from the ISP itself.
So if any of said ADSL customers would like to E-Mail us an updated comment or two on the matter then we'll try to make them known. We also want to know how this affects you, whether you can change packages or ISPs and how many are locked into a contract etc.?
Please do help fill in the gaps, we’re not Clara.net ADSL customers and require more details from associated customers to help build a better picture. |
Unmetered ADSL - But For How Long?
By:mark.j @ 8:58:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The ADSLGuide peeps have done up a new article which covers the issue of unmetered broadband access and whether it'll last for much longer.
This has become a very real concern, especially with the recent surge in take up, and we can't help but wonder how long it'll be before ISPs start imposing more limits:
Are we in the golden age of broadband at present? In the future will ISP's have to introduce various bandwidth options to their products in an attempt to pay for bandwidth. Why is this a worry? Well one of the reasons ADSL is cheap in the UK and other countries is that the bandwidth from the local exchange is contended which helps to reduce prices, i.e. BT populate a 10Mbps pipe with up to 1000 users, which spreads the cost out nicely.
The problem is it only takes 20 users using their full bandwidth 24/7 to start introducing contention on this pipe, in other words to keep the current status quo means a degree of fair use may be required.
This situation is different to ISP's kicking users off for being online too long. With ADSL, staying connected does not mean you consume bandwidth, it's down to what you use your connection for when you are connected. What's happening now is that people are forgetting the service is contended and often assume that they should get 500kbps all the time, as ISP's acquire more users and exchanges fill up, it's going to be less likely to get 500kbps at peak times.
The article is very good and similar in form to our own 'Unmetered Expectations' item, which was done for dialup access.
It's worth pointing out that the USA suffered such problems long before any primary broadband technologies were available in the UK. Unfortunately we don't have enough information on that particular market for a comparison. |
News - May 6,2002
UK Slapped Over Broadband - Again
By:mark.j @ 2:10:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Forrester Research's most recent report, Making ADSL Broadband Profitable, has become the latest in a long line to slap the UK over its poor handling of the technology:
It is the world's fourth-largest economy. It has widely escaped the ravages of the global recession, posting a comfortable growth rate of 2.4 percent in 2001. And yet it has one of the developed world's least-advanced communications infrastructures.
That country is the United Kingdom, which last year recorded broadband-Internet penetration of just 1 percent. The United States had at least 10 times that proportion of broadband users in 2001. According to Forrester Research's recent report, Making ADSL Broadband Profitable, only Ireland and Greece fared worse in Europe — because they have no broadband at all.
The U.K. represents an extreme example of a malaise that infects most European high-tech economies: Broadband so far has failed to reach critical mass.
The TVInsite item is EXTREMELY detailed and has some wonderful charts to show European broadband standings. Sadly there's little that we haven't seen before, although it's the only site we know of to show the UKs local loop unbundling (LLU) statistics as being positive =).
On the positive side and the UK still leads the pack with dialup modem access, which is thanks to having some of the cheapest unmetered access in Europe. |
Omne Goes Into Administration
By:mark.j @ 1:53:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] DigitalSpy is reporting that one of the only other cable operators to offer broadband cable modem access, Omne Communications, has hit a wall and called in the administrators:
Sources at the company have informed us that at 4pm today (May 3), half of the workforce at the company was made redundant. Later reports indicate that construction of the local cable network has been halted, and all new installs will be cancelled.
Update: The latest information indicates that the company has two weeks of working capital remaining, and is looking for a new backer. In the current climate however, the chances of Omne securing new financing are slim. The company has reportedly been suffering from poor reliability of its internet and cable television services. |
ISP Review Server Problems
By:mark.j @ 1:43:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] | For an as yet undetermined reason the server has been offline for the past 5 to 6 hours, although thankfully all is now back to normal. Typically it's taken so long because of the bank holiday and there's less people monitoring the servers. |
News - May 5,2002
ISPr Forum Maintenance - Update
By:mark.j @ 10:22:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] | The forum is now back online.. |
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