Posted: 30th Jun, 2004 By: MarkJ
In a rather surprising move, especially considering the obvious demand for slower speed ADSL services, both AOL UK and
Wanadoo are refusing to take part in BT's new 256Kbps trial. The reason would appear to be because it's come too late:
Since mid-May, AOL has been providing a 256Kbps broadband service by throttling down its 512Kbps IPStream connection. The ISP said BT's new capacity-based charging model makes this an affordable option, and it's keen to stick with its own rate limiting technology.
'We won't take part in the trial as there's no need,' said a spokesman. 'We do our own rate limiting on the AOL network, and think our system will be more able to let us do what we like. The trial clearly wasn't soon enough for a lot of us.'
Wanadoo has also changed its position on entry-level broadband since its recent rebranding, and claims to have no further interest in speeds lower than 512Kbps.The issue appears to be more one of territorial importance, with providers that don't currently offer 256Kbps options still likely to take part in the trial. More @ NewMediaZero.