Broadband News Archive - November 2007 to March 2008

New migration code expected this month (08-04-08) - The latest report from the Telecoms Adjudicator has said that a new “Migrations Code of Practice” will be released this month.

Super fast broadband only as common as dial-up (07-04-08) - Broadband connections over 8Mb are only as common as the old dial-up speeds of less than 128Kb - both being used by only three per cent of broadband subscribers, according to new research.

Virgin Media continues at the top (04-04-08) - Cable provider Virgin Media has held onto the top spot in BroadbandChoices.co.uk speed test results for March.

Carphone Warehouse may bid for Tiscali (03-04-08) - Carphone Warehouse could be a potential bidder for Tiscali, one of the UK’s biggest broadband providers, which went up for sale this week, according to reports.

Almost half of the UK are ‘computer illiterate’ (02-04-08) - Despite the ever-increasing dominance of technology in our lives, 42 per cent of the UK still considers themselves computer illiterate according to a new report by BT Home IT Support.

Ofcom takes action on mis-selling (01-04-08) - All communications providers will be forced to sign up to a dispute resolution scheme to deal with customer complaints under new rules being introduced by the telecoms regulator Ofcom.

Virgin Media to tackle illegal downloads (31-03-08) - Virgin Media looks set to become the first UK broadband provider to publicly share responsibility for illegal content downloaded over its network, it has been reported.

Online privacy a concern for consumers (28-03-08) - UK consumers are worried about the way that their personal data could be accessed over the internet according to the Ofcom Consumer Panel, which advises the telecoms regulator, Ofcom.

The real cost of internet television (27-03-08) - Downloading movies and TV programmes from the internet could cost consumers as much as £20 a month extra, experts have warned.

Young people being ‘raised online’ (26-03-08) - Spending more than 20 hours a week on the internet, many young people are effectively being “raised online”, warned the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).

Eight EU countries ahead of the US in broadband (25-03-08) - Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands and Sweden were all reported as world broadband leaders with more than 30 per cent broadband penetration, according to a new report.

Almost half of consumers don’t know their broadband speed (20-03-08) - Forty-four per cent of broadband users are unable to identify their actual download speed, according to new research.

Half of broadband users unhappy with their provider (19-03-08) - New research has shown that although broadband is now at its fastest and cheapest, 50 per cent of users are still not happy with the customer service that they receive.

ISPA Award Winners Named (18-03-08) - The 2008 ISPA awards took place at the weekend, with Plusnet emerging victorious in the race for the best consumer ISP gong.

BT in call for Broadband Advertising Regulation (14-03-08) - BT, the UK’s largest broadband provider, has called for the industry to be transparent in its broadband speed advertising.

We Tested, You Reacted (12-03-08) - Monday’s publishing of the BroadbandChoices.co.uk monthly speed test league table prompted a deluge of responses from broadband users up and down the country.

Virgin Media regains the top spot (10-03-08) - Cable provider Virgin Media has taken back the top spot on the BroadbandChoices.co.uk monthly speed test league table, after falling to second place in January.

Businesses unhappy over yet another broadband minister (31-01-08) - Baroness Shriti Vadera has been named as the UK’s new broadband minister after Stephen Timms moved on to the Department for Work and Pensions.

Covert Tiscali migrations (30-01-08) - Former Pipex customers who have been experiencing connection problems in recent weeks have been covertly moved to Tiscali’s local loop unbundled network, it has been reported.

Speed is the biggest problem for broadband customers (29-01-08) - A quarter of all UK broadband customers are unhappy with their internet service, with speed coming top of their list of gripes, according to new research.

Virgin Media announces speed upgrades (28-01-08) - Cable provider Virgin Media has announced that customers on its 4Mb L broadband package are to be upgraded to speeds of up to 10Mb for free.

Council bid to ‘bridge digital divide’ (25-01-08) - A Birmingham City Council cabinet member has appealed to broadband providers to reduce the cost of their services in order to make the internet more accessible to low-income households.

Best consumer ISP nominations revealed (24-01-08) - The nominees for the final category at this year's Internet Service Providers' Association (ISPA) awards have been revealed at last.

Tiscali traffic troubles continue (23-01-08) - Despite undoing the software upgrade that caused extreme traffic management during peak hours, Tiscali customers faced another evening of blockages and poor line speed yesterday.

2008 ISPA awards finalists announced (22-01-08) - The Internet Service Providers’ Association has announced the finalists for its 10th annual industry awards.

One pound in six spent online (21-01-08) - Internet spending grew by more than 50 per cent last year, with consumers spending £46.6 billion, according to e-commerce industry body, the Interactive Media in Retail Group.

2.6m customers for Carphone Warehouse (18-01-08) - The Carphone Warehouse, owner of major ISPs AOL and TalkTalk has announced a total of 2.6 million broadband connections over the two providers.

BT Home IT service a HIT (17-01-08) - More than a million minutes of help and advice have been clocked up by BT’s Home IT (HIT) squad since the service was launched a year and a half ago.

Broadband complaints soar (16-01-08) - Consumer complaints about ISPs have shot up by 43 per cent in 2007 according to the Government advice service Consumer Direct.

Internet heroes and villains of 2007 (15-01-08) - The Internet Service providers’ Association (ISPA) has announced its internet heroes and villains nominations for 2007.

Cable still ruling broadband (14-01-08) - The speed test results for December are in and show that cable still tops ADSL when it comes to speed and reliability.

Broadband connections near 15 million (11-01-08) - UK broadband connections have passed 14,961,000 according to the latest telecommunications market data tables for the third quarter of 2007, released by Ofcom.

100Mb for Kent residents in 2008 (10-01-08) - BT today announced that the first residential fibre-optic cable connections will be live in August this year, connecting up to 10,000 homes in Ebbsfleet Valley, Kent.

Three joins the free laptop giveaway (09-01-08) - Three Mobile Broadband customers can now get a free laptop, continuing the giveaway trend started last year.

BT Vision joins forces with the Xbox 360 (07-01-08) - Microsoft and BT Vision have announced that from mid-2008 Xbox 360 customers will be able to access the BT Vision television service through their games console.

Tiscali to become second ‘quad-play’ provider (04-01-08) - Italian broadband provider Tiscali is planning on launching a mobile phone service later this year, making the company the second UK ISP to offer the “quad-play” of broadband, digital television, home phone and mobiles services.

Switching worries prevent people saving (03-01-08) - While one in four broadband users are planning on switching their contract in 2008, new research shows that many people still can’t be bothered, despite potential savings of up to £141.60.

Broadband speeds will lead innovation (02-01-08) - Improving the connection speeds and reliability of the UK’s broadband services will “drive innovation” according to the Internet Service Providers’ Association (ISPA).

Christmas doesn’t stall the internet (31-12-07) - Bargain hunters went online this Christmas in a bid to snap up the best of the January sale bargains according to ISP PlusNet.

Ofcom to investigate broadband 'hidden charges' (28-12-07) - Having recoded an increase in complaints over “hidden charges” applied to broadband and mobile phone packages, Ofcom has decided to launch an investigation next year.

French company chosen to develop 50Mb broadband network (24-12-07) - A French company has been chosen to provide a fibre broadband network to 600,000 homes in South Yorkshire, in a project that could precede a nationwide next generation fibre network.

2007s fastest ISPs are named (21-12-07) - Sky has been named the most reliable broadband provider overall, as the fastest and most consistent ISPs of 2007 have been named by BroadbandChoices.co.uk.

The interest is there will customers pay more for 100Mb? (17-12-07) - Internet users are interested in next generation applications that super fast broadband connections would enable, but are divided as to whether or not they would actually want to pay extra for them, according to new research.

Rural customers ‘languishing on expensive deals’ (13-12-07) - Despite more than three million LLU connections now live in the UK, millions of people living in rural areas are being charged a premium for their broadband service.

Tiscali ranks top as broadband satisfaction falls (10-12-07) - Tiscali has ranked highest for customer service according to a new report, even as overall satisfaction with broadband providers sees a continued downturn.

VoIP providers must allow 999 calls (07-12-07) - Ofcom has announced that internet telephony providers must connect 99 calls to the emergency services - though not until September 2008.

BT to offer free movie downloads (06-12-07) - Movies punctuated with targeted advertisements will be available to download for free from BT’s BT Vision Download Store, in a trial starting this month.

Big six need to do more about speed (04-12-07) - Virgin Media has been knocked back off the top spot by Tesco Broadband, with its average reliability falling two per cent according to the latest BroadbandChoices.co.uk Speed Tester results.

Doubt cast on need for next generation broadband (03-12-07) - Both Ofcom and BT have questioned the current need for a fibre network in the UK, following the Government’s summit on next generation broadband last week.

Far-reaching broadband project falls behind (30-11-07) - A £70 million flagship project to bring fast broadband connections to the furthest outposts of the UK has fallen behind schedule and is running £1.6 million over budget.

More people downloading than ever before - but is it legal? (29-11-07) - Increasing numbers of people are streaming and downloading music and video content according to new research.

Free Sony PlayStation 3 with AOL (27-11-07) - Following the success of its “free laptop” offer, customers signing up to AOL Broadband Wireless Plus can now get their hands on a “free” Sony PlayStation 3.

Minister pushes for super-fast broadband (26-11-07) - Industry leaders are meeting with the Government today to discuss how to go about developing a next generation broadband network in the UK.

Ofcom Consumer Panel sets focus for 2008 (22-11-07) - The Ofcom Consumer Panel (OCP), which advises the regulator itself, has called on Ofcom to focus on three main areas in 2008.

Ofcom reports on consumer experience (21-11-07) - Although broadband costs are falling, the number of satisfied consumers is actually falling according to Ofcom’s Consumer Experience report, published yesterday.

Switching headaches continue (19-11-07) - An alarming 46 per cent of call centre operators gave the wrong advice on the LLU switching process, according to new figures.

50% admit to stealing broadband (16-11-07) - More than half of computer users have admitted to illegally accessing someone else’s wifi connection according to new research.