February 12, 2003 - February 17, 2003
News - February 17,2003
BTO To Cap Satellite ISP Users - Again
By:mark.j @ 2:37:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] UK ISP BTOpenworld has once again threatened some of its two-way broadband satellite subscribers with a download cap following overuse of the service. A total of 40 customers are currently in BTs line of fire:
In a letter to customers BT's ISP has warned them that they have been "using an excessive amount of bandwidth on a regular basis".
And unless they curtail their usage, then BT Openworld warned: "We will soon have to start imposing bandwidth limitations on your account at peak hours so that all our customers have a fair share of bandwidth."
You don't need a good memory to remember that this has happened before (last year), indeed the technical construction of satellite providers makes this a possibility for all such services.
Typically BTOpenworld hasn't clarified EXACTLY what it considers to be abuse of the service. Perhaps they should take a page from the book of unmetered dialup ISPs, which for the most part, now openly display any restrictions. More @ The Register. |
Gio Internet ISP Introduces NTL Support
By:mark.j @ 9:41:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] ISP Gio Internet has become the latest provider to offer NTL cable customers access to their unmetered dialup service, which appears to be becoming an increasingly common thing for ISPs to do:
NTL customers can now choose dial-up Internet access from Gio Internet
Low-cost Internet Service Provider, Gio Internet, is now able to make its full range of low-cost dial up Internet access services available to NTL customers. Previously customers of NTL's cable-based telephone services were restricted in the service providers they could access. NTL customers can sign up to Gio's range of services immediately from http://www.giointernet.com.
Gio Internet's dial-up Internet access services include unmetered access (which means call charges are included) at any time. The cost of this service, Gio’s most popular Gio Universal £7.99 per month for home users, one the UK's lowest cost unmetered access service available today. Users require a standard 56K modem, there is no set-up fee and calls at any time are included in the monthly fee. Metered access is available FREE for home users and there are no subscription charges.
"For the very first time, NTL customers have access to the low-cost, unmetered access Internet service available," said Managing Director Khaliq Abdul. "With Gio Internet’s low cost doesn't mean low-quality service. Our focus is to provide our customers with a choice of high-quality, low cost Internet solutions and take the strain out of getting online by providing small to medium sized businesses, as well as home users, with the level of help they need."
Gio Universal (NTL) £7.99
Max. Monthly Usage: 80hrs
Gio Anytime (NTL) £14.99
Max. Monthly Usage: 160hrs
Gio PlayTime - Evenings & Weekends (NTL) £8.99
Max. Monthly Usage: 80hrs
In the coming months Gio Internet will also launch business services for NTL customers and 128K services. |
ISP Vispa Discounts Unmetered Service
By:mark.j @ 9:34:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] UK ISP Vispa Internet has announced a special discount on its UConnect Standard package:
Vispa's Blue X Sale
If you are looking for an alternative Internet provider, so you can tell your current ISP to 'Hit the Road Jack'. This might just tempt you!
It's now time to save and join Vispa's flat-rate services! For a limited period Vispa UConnect Standard is starting at an amazing £4.99 for the first month (£14.95 a month thereafter) with a minimum contract of only 30 days! No Fuss and plenty of quality!
All packages come with a comprehensive feature list, which includes Unlimited Email Addresses, 25Mb Webspace, 80,000 Usenet groups, Vispa WebMail, Vispa Tucows Mirror, Vispa User Account Control Centre and National rate support lines to qualified technicians to name just a few of the benefits!
Are we wetting your appetite? Need another reason? What about this!
Vispa has already been voted during 2003 "Best Deal of the Month" by Practical Internet Magazine and Best Consumer ISP runner-up by Daily Mirror readers! Don't you think it's time you ditched a follower and joined a leading winning team?
For further information visit http://www.vispa.net or call 08701 624888 |
News - February 16,2003
ISP OF THE YEAR 2002 - Update
By:mark.j @ 11:26:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Please remember that discussion for our ISP OF THE YEAR AWARD - 2002 is still open for another few weeks and associated forum topics can be found below:
Cable Modem
ADSL
Unmetered Dialup
So far the rough shortlist appears to look like this (in no particular order):
Cable Modem ISPs
Telewest Blueyonder
NTL
ADSL ISPs
Zen Internet
Pipex
Firenet
Vispa
Nildram
Supanet
AOL
PlusNet
Unmetered Dialup ISPs
Virgin.net
Clara.net
AOL
NTL
Firenet
The above are almost entirely reader nominated, however a final shortlist will not be announced for another few weeks and will include more providers than those listed above. Please keep your opinions coming by using the associated forums above. |
News - February 15,2003
NDO ISP Supports Comic Relief
By:mark.j @ 9:56:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] UK ISP NDO has issued a new press release announcing support for the Comic Relief charity event; it's the second ISP to do so:
Comic Relief is a great charity helping to end poverty and social injustice; a cause which NDO is proud to be associated with. In support of Comic Relief NDO will donate £1 to Comic Relief for every new user to our HomeUnmetered range of products (this includes existing HomeDial users upgrading) -
New users can choose from:
AnyTime - 24 hours a day access - for £14.99
OffPeak - after 7pm and all weekend - for £10.99
NightTime - after 10pm each night - for just £4.99
All still include our unrivalled package of extras including:
National Rate Technical Support - available 24 hours a day 20 mb of webspace plus unlimited email addresses and - a free .co.uk/.org.uk/.me.uk domain name.
Anyone can surf the Internet the NDO way; and donate to Comic Relief at the same time. To signup - visit: http://www.signup.ndo.com - and be activated instantly.
We will donate right up to the end of Comic Relief on March 14th, 2003. |
EzAccess - Free ADSL Activation Update
By:mark.j @ 9:54:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] UK ISP EzAccess has sent a second small update on the closure of their free broadband ADSL line activation offer:
EzAccess Internet's FREE ACTIVATION OFFER on our standard £19.99 ADSL service ends on the 16/02/03. After this date, ACTIVATION will be £25.
FOR A SHORT PERIOD ONLY, EZACCESS's 128K ISDN Service will be available for £19.99 a month. This will be a saving of over £10 compared to a lot of other ISP providing 128K dual bonded Internet access. |
BT Confident Of Hitting ADSL Target
By:mark.j @ 9:52:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] BT is confident that its 'No Frills broadband ADSL service can still hit 500,000 subscriptions by summer, despite claims from critics suggesting otherwise:
With a marketing campaign planned for the second quarter of 2003, Pierre Danon, chief executive of BT Retail, has said he still believes the goal of gaining at least half a million BT Broadband subscribers by this summer is attainable.
In its latest financial results, published on Thursday, BT said weekly sales of BT Broadband are "now exceeding 7,500", and in a press release put out this week announcing a deal with Yahoo! BT disclosed that it now has "over 100,000" BT Broadband customers.
Some in the industry have speculated that these figures indicate that BT Retail will fall short of hitting its 500,000 target, pointing out that at 7,500 new subscribers per week it will take a whole year to add another 400,000 users.
It’s always best to wait and see, more @ ZDNet. |
NTL Customers Consider Legal Action
By:mark.j @ 9:46:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Customers angry at NTLs recent 1Gb download cap on broadband cable modem services may now be planning legal action:
Lawyers are currently examining the possibilities of setting up a "group action" against the cableco.
The fact that a legal team is mulling court action shows the depth of feeling among customers and is a sure sign that the row over the 1 Gig/day capping is unlikely to fade away quietly.
A week after NTL sneaked out news that it is to cap its broadband service, it still remains unclear whether there has been any sizeable protest against the cableco.
It's not the first time that customers of an ISP have considered such a move, yet it rarely comes to anything more than threatening rhetoric. Perhaps this time will be different. More @ The Register. |
News - February 14,2003
More Local Exchanges Read For ADSL
By:mark.j @ 2:33:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] | ADSLGuide reports that BTWholesale has today issued a slew of new Ready For Service dates on local exchanges. You can view the full list HERE. |
36Million+ xDSL Lines Worldwide
By:mark.j @ 1:52:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Point-Topic reports that broadband DSL connections topped the 36Million figure last year, with an estimated 60Million expected to be connected by end of 2003:
The number of DSL lines worldwide almost doubled in 2002, from 18.8 million to 36.3 million. According to new research from the company, 5.7 million DSL lines were added around the world during the fourth quarter of 2002.
The fastest growth was recorded in Western Europe where the increase averaged 28.5% in the latter part of last year.
The growth in both South Korea and North America has slowed, more @ Nua Internet Surveys. |
Internet Surfing Habits - 2000 vs 2002
By:mark.j @ 1:46:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Ipsos-Reid, the consumer marketing research firm, has today released the results of their latest study. The survey, which looks at the habits of Internet surfers, compares the year 2002 to 2000:
Online shopping has increased dramatically, according to the report. Nearly two-thirds of the 2,900 web surfers surveyed said they had bought something online at some point, up from 36% of those surveyed in 2000. The biggest markets for online shopping, according to the 12 country study, are in the United States and the UK, where 77% and 68% of web users surveyed, respectively, have made purchases online.
The percentage of respondents who manage their finances online has nearly doubled, from 20% in 2000 to 37% last year. Online banking is most prevalent in Canada, the UK, Germany and the United States.
Downloading music files has also increased in popularity, to the chagrin of the music industry. The percentage of web surfers downloading music files online increased to 44% last year, up from 38% in 2000. The largest jump in music downloading took place in China, Russia, Mexico and Brazil.
The research also highlights one problem presented by spending greater lengths of time online, the lack of true social interaction.
That’s assuming that the surfer is actually viewing the computer screen while online. More @ Silicon. |
Freedom2Surf Launches Telco Service
By:mark.j @ 1:31:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] UK ISP Freedom2Surf has today announced the launch of a new discount telephony service for its broadband ADSL subscribers:
Freedom2Surf offers broadband customers massive discounts on telephone calls
Freedom2Surf,(www.freedom2surf.net) the UK's leading independent ISP, has today announced the launch of a new telephony service for its broadband customers. Freedom2Surf will be providing call rates at massive discounts to BT and giving customers even more choice when it comes to selecting a telephone provider.
Freedom2Surf is one of the first ISPs to move into offering voice telephony services. The company believes that the prospect of bundled, high-quality broadband and inexpensive call rates, will be extremely attractive to both home and business users.
To use the new service and take advantage of the low call rates, Freedom2Surf existing broadband customers simply need to enter a five digit pre-fix code before dialling. Unlike some discount telephone companies, calls from Freedom2Surf will be carried over BT's phone network, providing customers with the same high call quality for both national and international calls.
Freedom2Surf will be offering telephone services to new and existing customers as standard without any minimum spend requirements, new contracts or additional rental charges. Customers will receive an itemised bill along with their monthly ADSL statement and will also be able to check their bill online, which will be updated on a daily basis.
Chris Panayis, managing director of Freedom2Surf commented, "Freedom2Surf has decided to move into offering voice services as we believe there is an obvious advantage for our customers to obtain telephony and broadband access from the same supplier, with just one bill. We have been working hard to develop a telephony service which will provide both our home and business customers with the reliability and quality of service they expect, but at a far more affordable price."
Freedom2Surf Call Rates per minute: (BT rates in brackets)
National Peak Calls: 2.5p (7.91p)
National Off Peak Calls: 2.5p (3.95p)
International Calls:
USA 3p (24p)
France 4p (28p)
Australia 4p (49p)
For a full list of discount international call rates please visit
http://www.freedom2surf.net/adsl |
Interoute’s 802.11g London Wireless
By:mark.j @ 1:21:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Interoute has today announced the launch of Europe's first commercially available 54Mbps (802.11g) point of presence broadband wireless network in London:
The deployment provides reliable high-speed wireless internet access across the area, while being capable of supporting in excess of 100 concurrent users.
It's a bold decision, primarily because the 802.11g standard is still in the draft stage. Never the less Interoute plans to continue its rollout throughout the year. More @ Europemedia. |
UPD: New ISP Review Survey (Poll)
By:mark.j @ 10:58:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] UPDATE: We changed the new poll question to something better - "Do you approve of the new Internet snooping laws?"
We've just uploaded a new survey, which asks: How do you most commonly view the Internet?. Results from the previous poll can be found below:
How happy are you with your current ISP?
Very Happy - 23.4%
Very Unhappy - 22%
Unhappy - 20.7%
Content - 17.4%
Happy - 16.1%
Total Votes = 1218
It's clear from the results above that ISP customer satisfaction is somewhat split, which isn't too surprisingly given the nature of this website.
43% were generally unhappy with their service, while 39.5% felt the opposite and were pleased with what they have. Only 17% chose to occupy the middle ground, not overly pleased nor too dissatisfied. |
BT Criticised Over DSL Campaign Cost
By:mark.j @ 10:08:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] BT has defended itself against allegations that the cost of its broadband subscriber push was too high:
BT said the additional customers could not be measured against the amount spent as the campaign was designed to stimulate take-up over several years.
The TV commercials were meant to create generic awareness of broadband the company added. "Between September and December the advertising was very intensive to kick-start the campaign and we will reap the benefits for a long time to come," a BT spokesman said.
We're not bothered so long as more people are registering for ADSL and thus increasing coverage. More in The Scotsman newspaper. |
NTL & Telewest Snub 3.4Ghz Auction
By:mark.j @ 9:57:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Apparently neither of the UKs primary cable operators (NTL and Telewest) are likely to take any part in the government's May 3.4GHz broadband wireless auction:
"We've got enough on our plate at the moment," Tony Grace, managing director of Telewest Business, explained. Grace added that this decision won't necessarily prevent Telewest from offering wireless broadband services in the future.
"I think you'll see a lot of partnerships formed, as companies work together and share the initial investment in these broadband technologies," Grace added.
It is also understood that NTL has no plans to bid for a 3.4GHz licence. NTL has shown considerable interest in wireless broadband, and is currently conducting a trial of a consumer broadband service in London.
Despite this the government is still confident that the auction will be a success, much as they have been with all of their past attempts; didn’t most of them fail? More @ ZDNet. |
Lucent's 24Mbps 3G Mobile Phone Chip
By:mark.j @ 9:47:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Lucent Technologies' has managed to design a new chip, which can run at up to 24Mbps, for 3G (UTMS) broadband wireless mobile phones:
The chip, which is 10 times faster than anything available today, is unlikely to be deployed anytime before 2006.
The turbo decoder chip is described as the first silicon for third-generation (3G) wireless data terminals that supports the evolving High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) standard.
HSDPA is an enhancement to Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) spread-spectrum technology, also known as wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA). The chip is fast enough not only to support first-generation HSDPA systems, which will offer transmission speeds between 5 and 10 Mbps, but also future Multiple-Input/Multiple-Output (MIMO) HSDPA systems, which are expected to achieve peak data rates up to 20 Mbps.
Wireless boffins interested in a more detailed examination should pop along to The Register. |
Quicker ISDN To ADSL Conversions
By:mark.j @ 9:41:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] ADSLGuide reports that BTWholesale now allows ISDN HomeHighway (HH) conversion orders via their electronic ordering system (ECO), as opposed to the previous manual method:
This should make it possible for ISPs that have integrated online ordering systems to include this option and will hopefully result in more service providers supporting the conversion. |
News - February 13,2003
Online Shopping Baffles UK Surfers
By:mark.j @ 2:43:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Continental Research’s Winter 2003 Internet Report has found that while online shopping continues to grow, shoppers still lack confidence in spending money online:
The number of UK adults using the internet to shop is growing steadily, with over 4.4 million spending E753m online over Christmas, 2002. Moreover, the number of people shopping online for Christmas has grown steadily from 1.5m in 1999 to 4.4 million in 2002.
But with 77% of usual internet users not making a purchase online at Christmas, the report shows that shoppers still lack confidence in spending money online, mainly due to lack of familiarity with the online shopping experience. For many, the internet is quite new and usage confidence still needs to be built.
The Europemedia item notes that just 16% of respondents sighted security as a concern. |
New ADSL Chipset Hits 20Mbps
By:mark.j @ 2:40:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Centillium Communications has developed a new broadband ADSL chipset, Palladia 210, which is capable of reaching speeds up to 20Mbps:
It will probably take a while to filter down to the average end user but the new chipset points the way that Internet connections are headed. It was only a few years ago that 10Mbps was the speed of a normal LAN. The downside is that telcos will have to install new kit at your local exchange before you can get it.
The new chipset is an all-in-one design with USB, Ethernet and ADSL built onto a chip with a MIPS processor. The processor allows the use of an embedded version of Linux to control the ADSL modem. Depending on the end customer, the chip can be used to make a USB modem or an ADSL Ethernet router.
While it's not stated in The Inquirer's item, this looks very much like ADSL 2 and should perhaps not be confused with existing technologies.
It’s still too early to tell whether UK operators would choose ADSL2 after ADSL1 or simply concentrate on pure fibre line connections instead. |
BBC Content Open To More DSL ISPs
By:mark.j @ 2:33:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] ADSLGuide notes that FairADSL, Zen Internet and PlusNet have become the latest three ISPs to be given access to BBCi Broadband content.
Currently customers of the following ADSL and Cable Modem based providers are allowed to view the BBCs broadband section:
Eclipse
Freeserve
Blueyonder
AOL
ntl:home
BT Broadband
BT Openworld
One.Tel
Tiscali |
Fast24's Unmetered Port Changes
By:mark.j @ 1:47:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] UK ISP Fast24 has issued a new service update announcing a major change in the allocation of their unmetered dialup (FRIACO) ports:
Following the recent announcement regarding the merger of Lattice Group Plc and National Grid Plc, the decision was made by their shareholder to sell the 186k Limited business. 186k is the current supplier, to Fast24, of the FRIACO ports which utilise the above telephone numbers (0808 992**** & 0808 185****).
As a result we have been informed that, following the sale, 186k will no longer be able to provide Fast24 with any FRIACO facilities beyond 9:00 AM on 28th February 2003.
Since being informed of this decision by 186k, we have decided to increase our capacity on our alternative 0808 9996356 number. All customers will be transferred to this number by February 28. To handle the additional demand, our capacity on this number will be more than TRIPLED from 20 February 2003.
This means that ALL numbers will continue to operate between now and
February 28 2003, with substantial additional capacity being available on the 0808 9996356 number from 20 February onwards.
At the completion of this number change, the Fast24 service will be operated with a modem contention ration of 7:1 or better.
The update also states that Fast24 hopes to resolve any existing speed and congestion problems by the aforementioned date. |
500Mbps Ultrawideband Access
By:mark.j @ 1:38:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Plans for ultrawideband (UWB), a short range wireless technology that can run at up to 500Mbps, appear to have hit a hump in the road.
UWB operates across several spectrums at once, yet the satellite industry and its TV and cable customers say the standard threatens to interfere with many of their broadcasts:
The "flooding" of the airwaves creates a short but powerful signal--about 100 times faster than Bluetooth, another short-range wireless standard.
But the new neighbors are starting to chafe as they rub bandwidth shoulders, just as the first commercial UWB products are being shipped. A number of satellite companies and their customers, including AOL Time Warner and Viacom, have raised concerns about interference in the past few days.
Companies supporting ultrawideband, such as chipmaker XtremeSpectrum, say the interference concerns are overblown. The issue could come to a head next week, when the FCC discusses the rules it created last January for UWB.
No need to worry just yet, UWB isn’t likely to make it into your homes anytime soon, if ever. More @ ZDNet. |
Poking Holes In BTs Results - Telewest
By:mark.j @ 1:17:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The UKs second largest cable operator has decided to try and poke a few holes in BTs latest financial results and Internet subscriber stats:
Gavin Patterson, managing director of Telewest Broadband, said: "Cable is retaining its clear lead over BT's ADSL technology, with around eight out of ten broadband users in our franchise area choosing our blueyonder broadband service.
BT is muddling its numbers with a confusing combination of business and residential customers. It's using over 100 ADSL resellers to stake a claim in broadband Britain, but still trailing in our wake."
OFTEL report issued yesterday shows cable with a clear broadband lead - HERE
Should BT include ADSL stats from third party suppliers in its total? Do wholesale ADSL connections count? Certainly it’s important to point out that BTOpenworld did not claim the 650,000 figure, yet BT as a whole did. Don’t you just love PR. |
Funding For Gwynedd Broadband
By:mark.j @ 10:35:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] The governments E-Minister, Andrew Davies, has today welcomed the news that Objective One funding has been secured to provide broadband internet access to 1,500 homes and businesses in Gwynedd (Wales):
The Digital Vale project has secured nearly £0.5 million in European funding for a £1.3 million scheme that will provide broadband internet access in the Blaenau Ffestiniog, Maentwrog, Penrhyndeudraeth, Talsarnau, Harlech and Porthmadog areas. The scheme will use radio technology to offer cost effective, fast, always on internet access to residents and businesses.
Welcoming the announcement, Andrew Davies said: "This is good news since the availability of affordable broadband services is crucial to the economic prosperity of Wales.
The scheme will allow businesses and homes in Gwynedd to make better use of information and communications technology and will ensure a better environment for businesses to grow and innovate.
The Welsh Assembly Government is committed to playing a leading role in creating a first class broadband infrastructure in Wales and Cymru Ar-lein sets out a clear action plan to achieve this. A package costing £18.4 million this year and £6 million in subsequent years will create high-speed network connections and internet access to schools, libraries and learning centres throughout Wales, with further funding going to local authorities to develop their networks." |
Cornwall's 1000th Broadband Business
By:mark.j @ 10:32:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Cornwall's local broadband development programme, Actnow, has signed up its 1000th business customer this week:
The actnow project was started in April last year with £12.5m of funding and partners including the county council, the regional development agency, Business Link, Cornwall Enterprise and BT.
The plan is to broadband-enable 13 exchanges across the county and sign up 3300 businesses within three years.
The last four exchanges were launched last week. There are 3000 total connections, including residential access, and the thousandth business - Redruth Brewery - went live on Tuesday (11 February).
More @ VNUNet. |
Bulldog Backed ISP - UKFastestDSL
By:mark.j @ 10:25:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] What appears to be the first public Bulldog Communications backed broadband ADSL reseller, UKFastestDSL, has today announced its services.
Unfortunately this is one of those resold services where almost no attempt has been made to separate itself from the supplier, Bulldog. In other words, if you were to subscribe then it’d be better to go directly through Bulldog itself:
UKFastestDSL
Your Friendly Broadband Provider
“We at UKFastestDSL.com researched the leading broadband choices available in the UK market today and determined that for the fastest speeds, widest range of service options, and best value, the broadband leader for the home Internet user is Bulldog. No contest.” G.D.Drapen, Managing Director and Authorised Bulldog Referral Agent
Bulldog Broadband is now offering a full range of DSL Broadband Internet services for Home Internet users.
FEBRUARY SPECIAL OFFER
Get 2 Months of Primetime 1000 or Primetime 2000 FREE!
For only £29.99 per month, UKFastestDSL can give you Primetime 1000*
– 1 Mbps downstream speed.
– Twice the speed of BT Broadband home service.
For only £39.99 per month, Primetime 2000*, is an incredible value.
- A spectacular 2 Mbps of downstream speed.
- The UK’s fastest DSL broadband Internet for the home!
*The Primetime products give you the full downstream speed when you need it most: between 6pm and 8am, all weekend and all Bank holidays. All other times, you still can enjoy high-speed 512Kbps downstream speed. Terms and conditions apply.
Other Plans Start as Low as £24.99 per month |
BTWholesale Extends SDSL Trial
By:mark.j @ 10:07:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] ADSLGuide reports that BTWholesale is to extend trials of its Symmetric broadband (SDSL) services, which are currently running on 22 exchanges in the London area, until 7th August 2003.
Apparently the total number of trial exchanges will be expanded to 100, which will mainly cover urban areas. Further, the initial connection charge of £450 is to be reduced to £350. |
BTs New Financial & Broadband Stats
By:mark.j @ 10:03:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] BT has today posted its third-quarter and nine monthly results to December 31st, 2002. The lengthy document, which can be read HERE, goes into a lot of detail and we've posted the ISP related highlights below.
Firstly, BT has now officially connected 650,000 broadband ADSL lines, up from Oftels recent ADSL Factsheet report, which stated 600,000.
BTWholesale continues to profit from unmetered dialup services delivered via FRIACO, although market changes have had an impact: FRIACO revenues continue to grow but are partly offset by the slow down in the conveyance revenues they replace.
The overall view for UK ISP BTOpenworld is as follows:
BT Openworld made continued improvements in turnover, profitability and cash flow. Turnover for the third quarter was £75 million, an increase of £16 million (27 per cent) on the third quarter of last year. The improvement is mainly due to growth in the new broadband products and continued revenue growth in the core narrowband product range.
EBITDA loss for the third quarter was £4 million, an improvement of £19 million (83 per cent) on the third quarter last year. The reduced losses reflect economies of scale, in particular in the narrowband business, which was EBITDA positive last quarter and is now profitable.
With effect from January 1, 2003, BT Openworld is under the management responsibility of BT Retail and will report its results as part of BT Retail. This decision reflects the maturity of BT Openworld's services and will allow the realisation of synergies, particularly in administration and back-office costs. |
Bulldog Preps 4Mbps Broadband DSL
By:mark.j @ 9:54:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Bulldog Communications has today announced the introduction of a new 4 Mbps DSL broadband product for residential customers, which costs just £80 per month!:
Bulldog Offers Break-Through 4 Mbps Broadband Speed and Unsurpassed Market-Leading Values for Residential Customers
Broadband service provider, Bulldog Communications, today announced the introduction of Primetime 4000, a speed-shattering 4 Mbps DSL broadband service for residential customers. Primetime 4000’s downstream speed is eight times faster than other leading residential DSL broadband Internet services. The upstream speed of 400 Kbps is nearly twice the speed of other comparable residential broadband products. Primetime 4000, priced at £79.99 per month, is the UK’s fastest broadband Internet service for the home and is the newest addition to Bulldog’s Primetime family of mega-speed DSL broadband Internet products. Other Primetime products include Primetime 1000 and Primetime 2000, offering 1 Mbps and 2 Mbps downstream speeds respectively.
In addition to offering the consumer greater speed, the Primetime product line has the unique ‘time-of-day’ feature. This industry-first feature gives the residential customer the highest speeds when they are needed: weeknights (6pm – 8am), all weekend (6pm Friday – 8am Monday), and Bank holidays. During the weekdays (8am – 6pm), the residential customer has unmetered ‘always on’ access at a competitive speed of 512 Kbps. The Primetime products are based on ADSL technology which means customers are free to chat on their telephone while they surf.
Bulldog has specifically designed new, innovative and unique products to address the growing consumer demand for higher-speed broadband Internet services. Bulldog’s 4 Mbps speed will appeal to consumers who increasingly desire faster downloading of emails, file attachments, video, film, and music as well as gamers who want the ultimate peer-to-peer game experience.
In conjunction with the launch of Primetime 4000, Bulldog is announcing special value offers and additional savings. For starters, Bulldog is slashing the price of the 1 Mbps downstream product, known as Primetime 1000, from £34.99 to £29.99 per month. For the first 500 customers who sign up for Primetime 1000 and Primetime 2000 this month, Bulldog is offering 2 months free rental and extending the reduced connection fee of £49 (vs. standard charge of £99). In addition, the company will give all customers signing up in February their mega-fast speeds all day, everyday through 30 June 2003.
In tandem with these adjustments to Primetime products, Bulldog has reduced the price of Alltime 500. With ‘all the time’ 512Kbps speed, Alltime 500 is now priced at only £24.99 per month. Available through any DSL-enabled exchange in the UK, Alltime 500 has no connection fee for customers signing this month.
Richard Greco, CEO of Bulldog, stated: "This is welcome news for customers who want best-value broadband products. Bulldog offers the full range of innovative broadband options: an affordable Alltime 500 for £24.99; a terrific value 1Mbps Primetime 1000 (priced at less than a pound a day at only £29.99); the robust Primetime 2000 2Mbps service for the serious home Internet user; and now the UK’s fastest DSL broadband service for the home, Primetime 4000. Bulldog is 100% focused on the delivery of a wide range of innovative, high-performance broadband products and services. Through the successful implementation of local loop unbundling in a competitive marketplace, the consumer can benefit from unique, differentiated product offerings like those Bulldog is introducing today.”
Bulldog’s Commercial Director, David Ferguson said, "Our customers are telling us they want more. We will launch more new products in 2003 than ever before. With the current product and market offensive gathering speed, the year 2003 will be one of the best for Bulldog Broadband.”
Launched just 8 weeks ago, Bulldog’s Primetime line of residential products has processed several hundred orders to date, with a conservative target of well over 1000 customers for the premium service before the end of Q1 2003. Primetime products are available throughout 35 exchanges on Bulldog’s Central London network. Bulldog is currently accepting orders by phone for Primetime 4000. All other residential products can be ordered by calling 0845 452 0052 or visiting http://www.bulldogdsl.com
Unfortunately you’d need to be within Bulldog’s limited local loop coverage to receive it. |
Powerline Success Extends Trial
By:mark.j @ 9:46:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Initial testing of the Powerline broadband technology (Internet access via a power cable) by Scottish Hydro-Electric has apparently been so successful that trials will now be extended.
Keith MacLean, one of Scottish Hydro-Electric's managers, was kind enough to write us the following update:
As you may be aware, SSE has trialled PLC as a means of bringing broadband to rural areas. The 2 trials have been in Crieff and Campbeltown. PLC is used to bring service into the customer's premise and a range of support technologies are needed to provide the overall service - eg fibre + SDSL in Crieff and satellite in Campbeltown.
The 2 projects are co-funded by various government agencies and the target is for 150 customers. We have already had about that number of registrations even though only a simple leaflet was used to let potential customers know. 60% are already connected and we expect the rest to follow shortly.
SSE has been very encouraged by these trials and is currently preparing plans for a wider scale marketing pilot to develop pre-production processes and examine more closely the marketing and commercial elements of this broadband offering. We are likely to be enabling areas covering 15,000 premises in one or two smaller towns or cities and hope to achieve good take-up rates these would be essential if the pilot is to be the precursor to a decision to roll out on a full scale basis.
The trial itself will be extended to a town in Scotland and one somewhere in the south of England. To date Powerline hasn’t had the best history in the UK, clearly this supplier is hoping to change that.
£25 per month for a 2Mbit-ps line is certainly impressive, although you'd need to receive your power supply from Scottish Hydro-Electric in order to benefit from its Internet service.
The trial is due to continue for a little while yet, although we'd be surprised if the low price tag remained for its final form. It may be cheap to deliver, yet the bandwidth costs of a 2Mbit-ps service should technically require more finance. |
Telewest On Broadband Capping
By:mark.j @ 9:31:AM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Telewest, the UKs second largest cable operator, is apparently learning from NTLs mistakes and doesn't plan to impose any immediate broadband usage limits of its own.
Despite this the operator has refused to rule out such a change, yet states that it would not go about it in the same unfriendly way as NTL have chosen:
The word from Telewest is that if it did implement any such restrictions it wouldn't simply alter the terms and conditions of an existing broadband package.
"We've no plans at this stage to bring in any download limits," a Telewest spokesman said, adding that it certainly wasn't something that could be ruled out in the future. "If we were ever to consider such a move, we would try to learn from the customer feedback surrounding NTL, and look at other options."
If Telewest does take this step in the future, it could decide to offer a cheaper but limited broadband service, as well as a more expensive and unlimited package. If so, customer consultation is likely to precede any decision.
So for the time being customers on Telewest's service can rest easy, although come 2004 things could be very different. More @ Silicon. |
News - February 12,2003
THUS Closing The Digital Divide
By:mark.j @ 2:38:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] THUS Telecom today announced that it has provided a new hi-speed broadband network linking five universities in the North of England.
The operator, which also backs UK ISP Demon Internet, hopes that the move will help to close the country’s North-South digital divide:
NORTHERN UNIVERSITIES TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LEADING EDGE TECHNOLOGY
THUS plc, one of the UK's leading providers of voice, data, Internet and contact centre services, today announced it has provided a new high speed network linking five universities in the North of England. The Northern Metropolitan Area Network (NorMAN), also connects the universities to SuperJANET, the private network for the UK's education and research community. Thousands of students can now benefit from the new network.
THUS has provided Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland, Durham and Teesside universities with a six-fold increase in bandwidth from 155MB to 1GB utilising leading edge Metro DWDM (Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing) to provide an optical Ethernet network for the universities, dramatically improving the speed of Internet access for students at these universities. The increased capacity means that students now have access to the same high speed Internet connectivity, provided by THUS, already available to students at London universities. The new network provided by THUS is enabling students to take advantage of the latest online learning materials, participate in remote lectures using video conferencing as well as obtain interactive tuition over the network.
Students are increasingly dependent upon the Internet for research and learning. In a recent survey of 300 students questioned on campuses across England (Student Book Buying 2001/ 2002) more than 60% of those questioned reported that they would use information from the internet instead of buying books. New collaborative learning techniques, such as E-science and E-learning, and the availability of multimedia content are also fuelling demand amongst students for fast and reliable Internet connectivity. |
Tiscali ISP Customers Gain Free Music
By:mark.j @ 1:58:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] Customers of Tiscali's dial-up and broadband ISP services are to receive six months of free digital music, interviews and radio programs included with their Internet service:
Customers will be given credits that they can trade in to listen to tracks or burn the music they like to a CD. The European net firm has signed a deal with music distribution firm OD2 and software giant Microsoft to set up the service.
Dial-up users will get 50 credits per month over the next six months that they can trade in to listen to 300 tracks streamed to their computer or to download 30 music files to their home computer.
Broadband users will get credits to listen to 400 tracks over the same period and will be able to cash in 100 credits at a time to burn music to a CD.
Tiscali is currently said to offer 150,000 music tracks by 8,500 artists, more @ BBC News Online. |
E-Mails Virus (Worm) Infections Decline
By:mark.j @ 1:51:PM - News Comments - SendNews [HERE] / PrintNews [HERE] VIA NET.WORKS UK has today issued the results of their latest research into online infections. The good news is that there appears to have been a reduction in viruses spread by e-mail:
One in every 145 emails is a virus, reveals VIA NET.WORKS UK
One in every 145 e-mails sent and received by small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) during January 2003 contained a virus, according to VIA NET.WORKS UK, a provider of managed Internet services for business.
This figure represents a 12 percent reduction in viruses spread by e-mail after the peak in December when nearly 1 in 130 e-mails were found to be infected. However, January's figure is still 37 percent higher than levels detected in October and November when Bugbear was wreaking havoc around the world.
"With viruses like Bugbear, Klez, Avril Lavigne and Hybris all doing the rounds in January, we've recognised a significant upturn in the number of infected e-mails," said Jeff Meulman, managing director, VIA NET.WORKS UK. "Legitimate business operations are in danger of being choked by viruses. In order to prevent this happening, firms need to make sure they are always protected against all the very latest threats."
Through its Managed E-mail Anti-Virus Service, VIA has been tracking the proportion of virus-infected e-mails that have been sent and received by its SME customers. 18 new viruses successfully spread 'in the wild' during the month of January out of the hundreds of pieces of malicious code released by virus writers. VIA advises businesses to regularly update their security systems against potential new threats to ensure they have the best possible protection.
"Applying the software patches that keep anti-virus protection up-to-date can be a time consuming task, especially for businesses without dedicated IT personnel," continued Meulman. "Because the fight against viruses is literally a 24/7 battle, many firms are finding it increasingly cost and resource efficient to outsource their protection to specialist third party players such as VIA."
More information is available from http://www.vianetworks.co.uk |
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