Business ISP Viatel has announced the introduction of several new un-contended (1:1) broadband ADSL packages, aka - MAXStream Broadband.

Despite the name, this is not an 'up to' 8Mbps package and instead comes in the following flavours:

• 512Kbps Downstream | 512Kbps Upstream


• 1Mbps Downstream | 832Kbps Upstream


• 2Mbps Downstream | 832Kbps Upstream

Prices start from roughly £100 per month for the symmetrical (same speed both ways) 512Kbps option, which places it very close to competing SDSL products of an admittedly higher contention ratio.

In addition MAXStream can be bonded, allowing up to four lines (for four times the cost, naturally) to be run alongside each other. Typically one of the key advantages to an un-contended ADSL product is that it can be made available to anybody able to receive ADSL over BT's (Datastream) national network.

Viatel claims to guarantee customers their bandwidth although it's unclear whether this service includes a full and proper Service Level Agreement (SLA).