|
Iceland is most web-savvy country, with a study showing it has the highest concentration of broadband users.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found that broadband was also widespread in South Korea, the Netherlands and Denmark.
But the US still has the most broadband users, with more than 49 million.
Carphone Warehouse has put an end to speculation on its free broadband product by revealing what it calls 'free broadband forever'.
For £9.99 a month and an additional £11 line rental, Carphone customers will get free local and national calls within the UK; free landline calls to 28 foreign countries including Australia and the US; as well as up to 8Mbps broadband.
Those signing up to the package will also need to pay a one-off connection charge of £29.99.
Rumours about the promised 'free' service had raised expectations that it would be priced at £4.99 a month, rising to £14.99 a month after three months.
UK ISP Pipex is hooking up with Intel to launch a wireless
broadband service in the UK's major metropolitan areas,
starting with London and Manchester.
Pipex is already running trials of its WiMAX service with
Airspan Networks at the US-based firm's test facility in
Stratford-upon-Avon. Now it's launched a joint venture with
Intel Capital - the chip maker's venture capital VC outfit
- to create Pipex Wireless. As apart of the deal, Pipex
has transferred its entire 3.6GHz UK spectrum license to
the new wireless business.
INTEL,
the world's biggest computer chip maker, is backing British
telecoms group Pipex to the tune of $25m (£14.4m)
to roll out a wireless broadband service across the country's
10 largest cities.
Not too long ago, AOL seemed unbeatable, with hundreds of
thousands of new dial-up Internet users flocking to the
service every month. Today, with dial-up becoming
deadweight, the former "America Online" is realizing
- perhaps too late - that it has missed the broadband wagon.
With a dwindling subscriber base, the company now finds
itself struggling to locate new growth areas. In2TV
- in effect, a rerun service for the Web - could reverse
this trend.
Telecoms
firm BT has announced that its foray in to broadband TV
services will start with a vengeance in the autumn.
The service will combine digital terrestrial TV with on-demand
film, TV and music programming, and is being touted as a
world first.
American
Online and Warner Bros. this morning announced that the
two firms are collaborating to launch a new, broadband television
network, In2TV.
Deutsche
Telekom, parent company of T-Mobile USA, announced that
it will begin installing VDSL2 broadband across Germany
and will have the technology available in ten metropolitan
areas by the end of this year. VDSL2 will offer download
speeds of up to 50 Mb/s and uploads of up to 10 Mb/s. Deutsche
Telekom said that the network will deliver about 100 free
and premium TV channels to customers.
BT
will be able to supply millions of UK homes and businesses
with broadband at speeds up to 8Mbps from the end of this
month. The telco announced on Thursday that faster broadband
services will be available from 31 March. They are based
on ADSL Max, which uses existing standards with all
rate limitations removed. This offers a much faster downlink
speed than BT's current ADSL products, which have been rate
limited since the service was launched.
The
UK's broadband 'digital divide', defined as the gap between
the fast internet haves and have-nots, is deeper than was
thought and may be getting even deeper, newly published
research has revealed.
Wald
Disney Co., on Tuesday launched an online subscription service
aimed at preschool children, completing its plan for what
a Disney executive called, an online theme park.
BT
has signed up the children's TV favourite Bob the Builder
for its new television service, which is launching this
autumn. It will announce tomorrow that three more content
partners will offer their programmes for the video-on-demand
service.
Last
week, several analysts were questioning whether or not DirecTV
Inc.’s apparent plans to enter the wireless high-speed
Internet market, in order to compete with cable’s
bundled services, was a good strategy.
The
Japanese company Sanyo has announced this week its plans
to bring a new wireless broadband system to the U.S. market.
United
Utilities has announced plans to speed up the sale of its
telecommunications arm ‘Your Communications’,
which provides broadband access in Cumbria. The firm, which
also provides fixed phone line services for businesses in
the North West, recorded a loss of £11.8m in the 6
months to October.
Broadband
growth across Europe is expected to falter at about 60 per
cent, according to analysts Datamonitor.
In its latest report, 'Consumer broadband markets: approaching
maturity?', the company predicts that in the next 18 to
24 months the aggressive pace of broadband adoption across
Europe will follow a similar pattern to the uptake of dial-up
and begin to plateau.
Firefox
web-browser for quicker broadband
Firefox
has an amazing amount of surfers who us their browser for
quicker broadband use and has very effective functions to
make a better internet experience, if your still using MS
Internet Explorer try Firefox to see if it works better
for you.
AOL,
the internet company, is to launch a broadband film-rental
service next year, offering a range of movies from its sister
company Warner Bros. The initial selection is likely to
include Batman Begins and Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s
Stone. AOL intends to expand the choice available steadily,
eventually adding films from other studios.
Research
and Markets has announced the addition of Online Gambling:
Bet, Call Or Fold to their offering. Fueled by the growth
of broadband connectivity, television coverage of poker
and a healthy slice of celebrity involvement, online gambling
is quickly moving from the fringes to the mainstream. Of
course, in many countries, it is still illegal.
Motorola's
vision is to make the internet more accessible and mobile
through the introduction of MOTOwi4 - wireless broadband
for fixed, nomadic, and mobile networks.
The
internet is on the cusp of "web 2.0" - or at least
it is if the BBC has anything to say about it. The British
television network is drawing much attention these days
for its innovative approach to interactive broadband TV
and internet content.
Wonder
Woman, Epstein and Chico will soon be together on one screen,
and it’s not the latest version of The Surreal Life.
Rather, America Online is launching an online classic broadband
TV network, In2TV, featuring 30 series from sibling Warner
Bros.’ library, ranging from off-net sitcoms and dramas
to animation.
Broadband
access in South West England is to increase from 99% to
99.99% following a £1.3m cash injection.
The South West Regional Development Agency (RDA) is investing
the money to upgrade 19 rural telephone exchanges.
The money will mean outlying businesses will be able to
get access to high-speed internet connections.
BT SOUGHT
yesterday to play down the threat of new competitors such
as BSkyB despite its share of new broadband customers slipping
to the lowest level in nearly a year.
BT’s
retail business, which is relying on “new wave”
services such as broadband to offset the decline in traditional
calls, won just 27 per cent of new broadband connections
in the quarter to September 30. The figure represents a
one percentage point drop on the previous quarter and a
five percentage point drop compared with the fourth quarter
of last year.
The“father
of the internet” says Ireland is adopting broadband
communications far too slowly and has called for urgent
government action to address the problem.
Vint Cerf, employed by Google as a globetrotting “internet
evangelist”, says Irish people are not getting the
full benefits of being online because of the lack of high-speed
internet access.
British
Telecom has confirmed that it is to launch new higher speed
wholesale broadband services across the UK. Services of
up to up to 8Mbit/s will eventually be available.
BT confirmed that the BT ADSL Max and BT ADSL Max Premium
broadband services will be launched on a national basis
from 31 March this year. More than 5300 exchanges are being
upgraded to support higher speed broadband, with these exchanges
serving more than 99.6 per cent of UK homes and businesses.
The
European Commission (EC) has given the go-ahead for plans
by the Welsh Development Agency (WDA) to wire up 14 Welsh
business parks in North Wales with broadband.
Due to their remote locations, these business parks are
without broadband. But thanks to a scheme called "FibreSpeed
Wales", the WDA is looking to hire a wholesale operator
to construct an open, carrier-neutral, fibre-optic network
linking all 14 business parks
Verizon
is offering its broadband and FIOS TV on-demand customers
a slate of content from ABC News, Disney Online, ESPN and
Movies.com. The online programming includes live video news
feeds, live sports events and children's entertainment.
Later this year, SOAPNETIC, a broadband service from SOAPnet,
will be added to the Verizon lineup.
Sky
by Broadband provides 200 films free to digital subscribers,
although they must have a broadband connection and a PC
using Microsoft Windows XP. The company says it hopes to
supply more than 1,000 films from Sky Movies' back catalogue
through broadband.
Some
51,000 households in remote Scottish communities now have
access to broadband, putting Scotland’s availability
on a par with the rest of the UK.
Software
giants Microsoft and satellite broadcaster BsykB have announced
a major tie-up in a bid to secure dominance of the burgeoning
broadband video market. Microsoft is to join Rupert Murdoch’s
BSkyB in developing a video-on-demand (VoD) service for
the software giant’s Media Centre users.
Carphone
is ready for the broadband battle
Charles Dunstone,
the founder of Carphone Warehouse, is gearing up for the
fight of his life as he takes his company into the increasingly
competitive broadband market in the UK and pursues his aim
of becoming the number one competitor to BT in the residential
market.
Telewest
tops JD Power Broadband ISP Chart
Telewest has topped a list of the UK's six leading broadband
ISPs while NTL - the cableco that is currently in the process
of buying Telewest - came last in the 2005 UK Residential
Broadband Internet Service Providers Satisfaction Study
by JD Power and Associates.
Broadband
Video Continues Ascent
The worldwide broadband video market is booming and set
to explode over the next several years.
As consumers continue to clamor for more content over the
Internet, growth is expected to reach $16 billion through
the end of the decade, according to ABI Research.
CNN
Pipeline will be broadband-cast in high-definition, Broadcasting
& Cable says. Pipeline's Atlanta control room is all
HD -- a first for CNN. "Sony's MVS-8000 Series production
switcher, a Leitch HD video server and HD graphics will
all be used to deliver content" to Pipeline's fully
produced "channel one" stream. "Original
content for Pipeline will be shot in HD, with the use of
Sony HDV and HDCAM gear in the field and Sony HDC-930 cameras
for the studio portion.
UK telecoms
giant BT Group PLC has won a six-year, multi-million pound
contract to build a national broadband network for Scotland's
National Health Service.
BT, which has already signed a similar deal with the NHS
in England, said it would assume responsibility for the
integration and overall service performance of a broadband
network across Scottish hospitals.
The
race to offer broadband internet users even faster connection
speeds took a turn for the better today with the announcement
that UK Online, the UK ISP based in Somerset is to offer
the first national unlimited broadband service at up to
22Mb.
Competition
in the UK's broadband market is growing, with several ISPs
gearing up to install their own kit in BT's local exchanges.
Wanadoo announced on Tuesday that it is now offering its
own broadband services in Leeds, after unbundling 16 exchanges.
This allows customers in the area to buy an 8Mbps service
from Wanadoo. This is four times as fast as BT's own broadband,
which Wanadoo will continue to sell.
Broadband:
Speed up your Net life
If
You are a heavy Internet surfer or you want to install a
webcam at home to keep a tab on the goings-on while you
are at work, then broadband is for you. The the good news
is, your phone line will be free even as you remain connected
to the Internet, something that is not possible with a dial-up
connection. If you are wondering whether broadband is unaffordable,
think again please take a look around our site we display
the best up to date offers from broadband providers.
TM
buys 49 percent in Spice for USD 179 million
Telekom Malaysia has confirmed it is buying a 49 percent
stake in Indian mobile operator Spice Communications. Spice
has operations in two of India's most lucrative telecom
regions, Punjab and Karnataka, with a combined subscriber
base of 1.8 million as of February 2006. The acquisition
complements TM's existing operations in Bangladesh and Sri
Lanka.
Intel
says it will bring forward the rollout of its new scheme
for long-range wireless internet access. Cards allowing
access to Wimax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave
Access) are now expected to be available this year.
Wimax is billed as a successor to the much shorter range
wi-fi technology.
Whereas wi-fi range can be measured in yards, Wimax could
potentially reach a few kilometres in cities and 16km (10
miles) in open country.
Connect
Broadband service, a wholly owned subsidiary of HFCL Infotel,
on Thursday announced its strategic tie-up with Star India
Private Limited to carry its content on former's broadband
services in Punjab.
This will be a step forward towards triple play by telecom
operators offering voice, data and cable on a single line.
"This partnership will enable both the brands to provide
digital content and other IP-based services such as Video-on-demand,
pay-per-view and others that will enrich the customer experience
like never before in the Indian market."
Gridline
Communications Holdings, Inc., a fully reporting public
corporation, announced today that the company has entered
into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to purchase all
of the assets of Broadband Horizons, a Texas-based company
that provides Broadband via Powerline (BPL) services, as
well as offers consulting and engineering support for BPL
systems. Under the terms of this MOU, Gridline will merge the entire
operation of Broadband Horizons into Gridline.
BSkyB
declares Easynet offer unconditional, has 83.9%
On 6 January, UK broadcasting company BSkyB declared its
offer for UK-based pan-European broadband ISP Easynet unconditional
in all respects. The directors of BSkyB are pleased to announce
that all of the conditions of the offer have now been satisfied
or waived.
Phone
wars make way for broadband battles
On a business trip to London in August, Jeff Pulver was
blocked from making an Internet phone call over the broadband
connection in his hotel room. He had no trouble using that
same line to connect with his cable TV box back home in
New York to watch live American television. Full
Story
LONDON
- Broadband industry analyst, Point Topic reported yesterday
that Britain now has the largest number of broadband users
in Europe overtaking France with 9.8 million users.
FINE
GAEL has branded the Government’s broadband policy
as a failure and called for new legislation to ensure adequate
broadband access nationwide.
Party communications spokesman Bernard Durkan said concerns
about the lack of high-speed broadband are well placed. Full
story
Telecom,
a critical infrastructure for economic growth of the country
continued to show up an impressive performance in 2005.
India continued to startle the world by providing world-class
digital mobile services at the most affordable tariffs in
the world.
The
controller of BBC Two has said he wants it to be the first
mainstream TV channel to appear on broadband.
Roly Keating revealed his vision of an online BBC Two mixing
"simulcast programming" and "comprehensive
catch-up" in a speech to TV executives. He said the
channel would be "in the front line" of launching
on broadband. A pilot will be unveiled next year along with
further trials of MyBBCPlayer, which will allow viewers
to legally download BBC programmes.
The
Cable & Wireless subsidiary will launch more small business
services next year, as it looks to put this year's disasters
behind it. Communications operator Bulldog is planning a
new assault on the UK's small business sector. It announced
the creation of a new division, called Bulldog Business,
on Wednesday. New services for business customers are due
to launch in 2006, starting with a broadband service for
small businesses.
Businesses
are not getting full value from the high-speed broadband
networks at their disposal. It is high time someone helped
them. Running a small business has always been a white-knuckle
ride. Never having enough resources, fighting for every
deal, juggling staffing issues and always aware that a couple
of missed payments could send you straight into the poorhouse.In
this environment, it is no wonder that few SMEs have got
around to giving broadband their full attention.
Executives
who travel on corporate jets may soon be finding in-flight
high-speed Internet a common feature. Only Annapolis, Md.-based
Arinc is on the market now with a broadband service for
corporate jets. But competition is set to intensify in 2006.
AOL
has emulated rivals Wanadoo and Tiscali and placed its first
LLU (Local Loop Unbundling) orders with BT.
It has already begun a small trial in London but the number
of exchanges and locations that the ISP plans to unbundle
is not known. The move to LLU was not unexpected as AOL
has been dropping hints for some time and it will enable
it to offer both faster and cheaper services.
High-speed
transmission. The term is commonly used to refer to Internet
access via cable modems or, which is faster than dial-up.
For years, "broadband" has referred to a higher-speed
connection, but the actual speed threshold has varied.
Broadband Links
Zdnet - The place for lastest business and technology and broadband
news http://www.zdnet.co.uk
Broadband
Exchange : Broadband exchange information and broadband resources http://home.btconnect.com/hgi/broad/
BBC
Broadband, quality website full of great things
to learn, do and see. Online Music Television plus much
more http://www.bbc.co.uk/broadband
Broadband
4 Britain
Campaign for broadband internet access throughout Britain,
features news and a discussion area.
www.broadband4britain.co.uk
The
Register, a very informative website on consumer
products such as broadband take a look http://www.theregister.co.uk/telecoms/broadband
Another
interesting broadband website which has public forums, reviews
of broadband complaints etc http://www.broadband-help.com/
Its
project broadband at Rabbit Broadband,
an organization researching broadband solutions within the
UK http://www.rabbit-broadband.org.uk/
ADSLguide:
The UK's premier guide to broadband ISPs, technology news
and user Findthe latest and greatest broadband news in the
UK, service provider ...
www.adslguide.org.uk
Go wireless
with BT Broadband from just £17.99
a month and enjoy the Internet around - Test drive Business
Broadband today!. From only £19.99
www.bt.com
Full
spec & upto date broadband compare website. www.broadband-service-uk.com/
CONNECTED
COMMUNITIES - Bringing Broadband to the Western Isles.www.connectedcommunities.co.uk/
SustainIT
- Understanding the relationship between Information
and Communication Technologies (ICT) and sustainable development.www.sustainit.org/index.php
Digital
Yorkshire : Yorkshire and Humber is a world-class
location for companies who use digital technology at the
core of their activity. www.digitalyorkshire.org.uk
Quality
Broadband provides all the information you need
on broadband. We have done our homework so you don't have
to! http://www.quality-broadband.co.uk/
Get
the best broadband deal with Broadband Essentials
Broadband Essentials has researched the broadband marketplace
to bring you the best broadband deals around. http://www.broadband-essentials.co.uk
|
