More flexible deals offered by Plusnet
Cutting short the traditional eighteen (18) months minimum contract terms by Plusnet, the company announced it is now allowing customers greater flexibility in subscribing to its packages. Recently, Plusnet launched its reduced contract terms to just 12 months or one year.
For customers opting for entry-level value package, they will see this information on the value and unlimited broadband packages. Dubbed the lowest costing package in the United Kingdom in terms of annual cost, the lowered contract times costs are pegged at £5.99 each month for the first three months. For the succeeding months, it will cost £11.99 monthly.
Plusnet also informed consumers who live in areas with four or more broadband service providers that they will pay just £5.99 per month from connection until the end of their contract. The same applies for regions foreseen to have increased number of providers, but where their local exchange serves over 10,000 users.
Apart from the affordable costs, the new contract terms already includes an 8Mb internet connection speed, download limit of 10Gb every month and a free wireless router.
The unlimited deal package offers the same speed and wireless router, but has no monthly download unit. It also adds a static IP address, with costs pegged each month at £11.99 for the first three months, and £19.99 thereafter.
Other offers include Plusnet’s Talk home phone add-ons, evening and weekend options with free landline calls, discounts to UK mobile calls, and free minutes for both local and international calls. Plusnet also offer the Talk Anytime which could mean great savings as well.
Both Value and Unlimited options offer customer support 24/7.
Already award-winning with their old system, Plusnet reaped more citations for offering these newer options, alongside its pricing scheme and excellent, reliable service.
Plusnet was awarded among the Top 10 Broadband and recognized as the Best Value Home Broadband Award.
Which? Survey ranks Zen Internet as the best broadband service provider
Zen Internet has been ranked as the top ISP for the fourth consecutive year by Which? magazine. Zen scored full marks for reliability, speed and service. The poll, which was conducted from Which? members’ ratings, awarded it 3 out of 5 for value for money despite having the most expensive rates at 17.61 pounds per month.
It had scored the top ranking in the consumer magazine’s league table with a score of 87% overall, which represents the chances of a customer recommending the service to a friend along with the customer satisfaction. Utility Warehouse, O2 and Be score more than 80% in this survey but the four biggest ISPs in the UK, TalkTalk, BT, Tiscali and Virgin Media were not able to score over 60%.
Orange, AOL and Tiscali were all found to be at the very bottom of this table with a score of about 32% and lesser and were said by the magazine to be ‘Don’t Buys’, meaning that the service was very bad.
This report, which was conducted by Which?, was full of praise for Zen, which has more than 350 people in its workforce, for their top – class reputation for good customer service.
They said that for most of the members of Which?, the top – class customer support, connection reliability and the willingness of Zen to take extra efforts to solve customer’s problems are fully worth paying the extra money.
They also said that the one – month contracts, which Zen provides, has a general emphasis on the quality of service rather than the lengthy contracts which other companies use to tie in their customers.
Zen Internet, which has their headquarters based in Rochdale, their founding town, has got a large number of business accolades in recent years, including the PC Pro Best Broadband ISP for five consecutive years.
Source - telegraph.co.uk
Wifi seen to close gaps in UK broadband
With the government of United Kingdom planning to use 3G in order to plug spaces in broadband, Selina Lo, chief executive of Ruckus Wireless, came out to express disagreement.
Explaining to eWEEK Europe her stand, Lo said that despite convincing hypes of 3G having the capability to fill the gaps in UK broadband infrastructure, it is unlikely a success will be seen by the government and the broadband consumers.
Lo, considered an industry expert, said that the gaps in UK’s national broadband infrastructure needs to be filled with wireless (wi-Fi) networking connections instead. Further explaining why, Lo said that the 3G does not have the right components to fully implement closing of the gaps in the current broadband loopholes.
The expert further said that the 3G alternative will only work with providing 2Mb broadband for users who are nearby the base stations, an idea which is impractical for those who want speedier connections but live far off the said bases. Added to this, Lo added that with the current situation, even those close to the base station don’t normally get the 1Mb speed.
With regards to the potential of Wi-Fi, lo told eWEEK Europe that in places where cooper is not available, the outdoor access can still provide broadband connection, and faster speeds at that. She said that it is why plenty of developing markets sees Wi-Fi the same way, and are skeptical about the claimed benefits a 3G connection would provide.
Lo repeatedly insisted that what the users demand is not what the government is providing, saying strongly that it should be Wi-Fi that the UK government will employ to effectively bring the broadband infrastructure gaps to a close.
In related news, the 802.11n specification for wireless networking used in Wi-Fi has been approved by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
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Devon citizens undergo broadband speed survey
A study to be carried out by Devon Renaissance pertaining to a new survey on broadband speed servicing the region is in place. This came after the Devon County Council agreed on commissioning such a survey to further detail variations and related information and figures of different service providers in the area.
Devon Star, the county’s leading source of news, reported that thousands of residents across the Devon County are encouraged to log on to a special site that details realities about speed standards in uploading and downloading to better evaluate their current broadband service.
The Devon Star also reported that about 25 business –or 1,500 firms - located in the outskirts of the county has been found unable to get broadband services connection. These entities were also urged by the Council to express their opinions about the service provider they have subscribed to, and give out assessment of the effects on the connection to their business operations and growth.
Devon Renaissance general manager Liz Abell shared to the newspaper that now more than ever, the residents and businesses of the county need a reliable broadband connection of they are to be at par with the rest of the country.
As for the survey, Abell said it targets to map broadband speed and reliability all over Devon, which is why they are calling for the entire community to take active part in the survey.
To get involved, Devon residents and business proprietors just need to visit the website and test their broadband speed. There they can find out also whether their location is classified as a “hotspot” or a “notspot”.
In related news, the BBC also launched days before a new study, alongside ISPreview to measure the public’s views and opinion on broadband speeds.
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Web TV regulations launched by Ofcom
The telecommunications and broadcasting regulating authority, Ofcom, recently published a report pertaining to the video-on-demand (VOD). Such implementation from the watchdog could mean a changed landscape for this particular sector which enjoys monstrous traffic from broadband consumers.
The recent years saw consumers’ great accessibility and wide-ranged choice of facilities and services, among them 4oD, SkyPlayer and BBC iPlayer, including different clip hosting sites on the web.
These new proposals are deemed necessary to properly regulate the VOD market movements, and Ofcom sees a number of content suppliers being intently monitored. The watchdog also explained that the revised European law indicates that providers must stick to specified broadcasting rules.
For consumers, the VOD implementation means they are getting protection by the basic content standard because the law enforces stricter adherence to the European Union’s regulatory bodies. Ofcom elaborates that they are merely ensuring that consumers will be on the right track as provided by the EU audiovisual services directive.
Such change in processes which takes effect in December 19 are deemed to make a deep impact on users of both Virgin Media and BT Vision which both allows the iPlayer options in their services.
Oxfam and many groups however see these regulations to render greater positivity toward users and viewers. This is because among the indicated laws are regulations against inciting hatred towards groups based on race, sex, religion and nationality. The authorities will also closely monitor contents that might impair any developmental aspects of minors, particularly their mental and moral enrichment.
While many conservative groups are thankful and hoping for the laws to be enforced, they are also contemplating on including private websites and portals like YouTube to be included in the Oxfam jurisdiction, including electronic versions of newspapers from all over the world.
New Africa’s wait for speedier broadband service is over!
Government-funded East African Marine System (TEAMS) puts slow internet connection to rest as it lays down the new high-speed undersea cable which connects the region to all parts of the globe.
This has news of faster connection and lowered costs is most welcomed by Kenyans whose highest internet speed for residences is pegged at mere 1 Mbps. Currently, price details for the connections are being debated since the costs are close to $1,500 yearly, while an average Kenyan earns just around $800 annually.
Despite Seacom cable having gone live since August and many Kenyan residences and businesses benefiting from increased speeds at lower expenses, government officials are still tracking down ISPs deemed to be ripping off users. This came after numerous reports that connection is only possible after dark and on weekends. The expensive satellite connection that Kenyans and East Africans opted to use until Seacom was launched was also seen detrimental to business growths due to slow connection.
Many web developers and programmers have expressed disgust over costly, snail-paced connections which prevented them from making profits. They await TEAMS’ promised delivery with apprehension that only stable businesses and affluent individuals might benefit from the faster but pricy connection.
But with TEAMS offered 1.28 terabits per second, the government informs the public that high-speed and low-cost internet will soon be available. In fact, BBC got a report from government spokesperson Bitange Ndemo that the TEAMS cable is functional and not overhyped as some entities and groups claim.
Ndemo also expressed positive views of the growing market and East Africa being a key player in development through the TEAMS contribution.
Meanwhile, arguments go back and forth regarding the market forces. Many claim that speedy internet access should have low costing so that many connections will be seen, while on the opposite force claims the costs are high because of limited users.
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LTE Seen as Better Data Access Technology
Industry experts speaking at United Kingdoms’ Wireless 2.0 conference expressed their view that LTE or Long Term Evolution technology will not have problems competing with today’s fixed broadband connections in future markets.
Professor Michael Walker, director of Vodafone UK’s research and development group, said that the new data technology coined Long Term Evolution or LTE will be able to match or even surpass the connection speeds of current hard line regular fixed broadband connections.
The mobility and heightened experience of wireless internet combined with the high speeds of today’s fixed line broadband speeds will results in a richer and higher quality experience, said the professor. By matching land based fixed broadband lines with wireless connections former concerns of data speeds and reliability will be put to rest.
Long Term Evolution, WiMax, and FTTH or Fiber to the Home are now competing technologies vying for market share in the United Kingdom. This competition is key to learning the future of broadband technology in the country. Currently Vodafone’s stance is clear that LTE is their choice for future broadband connections.
Current HSPA networks employed by the United Kingdom’s mobile broadband operators use a lower spectrum that is less efficient in data transmission. Long Term Evolution will use the 20 MHz spectrum which can carry a download speed of 15 Megabits per second. Field trials of the technology has shown 20 Megabits per second transfer speeds at the center of a Long Term Evolution cell and 1.3 Megabits per second transfer rates at the edges.
Learning from its mistakes using 3G technology, Vodafone’s says that it will ensure the viability of Long Term Evolution before purchasing a radio spectrum. "3G was going to give 1Mbit/s but in some places you were lucky to get 300Kbit/s. It's not going to be like that with LTE." said the professor.
Ireland Shifts to Vodafone for Broadband Connections
A new contract between British Telecom and Vodafone led to the transfer of Irelands voice and broadband services to Vodafone. Small businesses and residential consumer broadband customers of British Telecom will now receive their connections from Vodafone. The deal which has been in play for several months know is deemed to beneficial for both companies and consumers.
Vodafone, the mobile phone company, has become the second largest provider of land based broadband in the recent months. It has gained a total over three thousand small businesses and eighty-four thousand residential customers as a result of the transfer from British Telecom. The seven year contract ensures that Vodafone will maintain its major position in the broadband market today. Other than land based broadband connections, Vodafone is also known for mobile broadband connections and other mobile phone based data applications.
British Telecom will now be focusing on wholesale broadband and its underlying infrastructure. Using a technique called Local Loop Unbundling, British Telecom intends to increase the number of corporate customers using previous resources devoted to consumer businesses. One of these new customers is the new consumer broadband provider, which is Vodafone.
The contract is valued around 4.8 million pounds in assets. This latest business transaction make perfect sense for the situation in Ireland where small business and consumer broadband only accounts for about ten percent of the overall customer base of British Telecom in the area. According to British Telecom (Ireland) CEO Chris Clarke ‘Our core focus has been the corporate market. And infrastructure-based competition hasn't happened in Ireland."
The executive also added that they are planning to unbundle fifty-eight more exchanges to add to the twenty two exchanges already unbundled by British Telecom. Using this unbundling technique almost two-thirds of Ireland will have broadband speeds of up to 24Mbps which is a great increase from the previous available broadband speeds in the area.
iPhone: An alternative mobile broadband, which can be bought at an exactly same price
It is genuinely true that the expenses that were spent by mobile suppliers to utilize both the Apple iPhone 3G and iPhone 3G S can just be equated with the cost of a piece of a software.
Around the globe, mobile users are shifting from using iPhones to utilizing a wireless broadband modem in their everyday communication. This in-demand modem has 3GB memory storage; yet, users have to pay £14.68 for this kind of gadget.
Interestingly, this small but useful piece of software can be also downloaded from benm.com, which is the site of iPhone buffs.
O2 is the sole mobile network provider in the UK for the iPhone, and at present, it is enjoying the great sales upon the release of the new model of iPhone 3GS.
On the contrary, this release can also bring some conflict to the popular mobile provider. O2 will likely to file legal claims against the administration of iPhone for some of its dues left unpaid.
With this legal actions that likely to impede the operation of this gigantic mobile provider, there are still great chances that iPhone will continue to produce useful and unique applications upon the settlement of this conflict.
iPhone has been known for its good reputation in creating valuable and one-of-a-kind software applications through the years. It may be banned for quite some time; but for sure, this will be fixed in due time accordingly.
The stores that sell various iPhone Apps are strictly regulating the marketing and sales of their products; they guarantee that not a single application will be detrimental to both users and mobile providers.
O2 Recipient of Multiple Awards
During the latest Internet Service Providers Association Awards, O2 garnered several awards. The company is UK's top mobile, fixed line and broadband service provider. Because of its recent success and recognitions, it is now celebrating all its achievements.
Because of this, recent reports professed that O2 has elevated itself to be to be one of the biggest mobile and broadband service provider in the region now that it has received a number of awards under its belt. This has significantly added to the already growing success of the Telefonica-owned company. O2 has been consistent in its continuing promotional strategies. Among the company's campaign is to have more broadband coverage in UK. They have already tied-up with major hotspots to have more Wi-fi coverage and engage more potential users to try out the services available.
Among the awards that O2 received were the Best Consumer Fixed Broadband Award and the Best Consumer Service Award. For the latter, the concession of the majority of the judges is that O2 was over-qualified for the award and has exceeded the expectations. The mobile and broadband service provider giant garnered the recognition because of its continuing excellence in customer service. The company can also pride itself in the fact that it has a small number of complaints from its users. O2 beat out its rivals: Virgin Media, Be Unlimited, Eclipse Internet, and PlusNet.
The other awards were enjoyed by Claranet and Vodafone. Claranet for Best Business Broadband Internet Service Provider award and Vodafone got the Best Consumer Mobile Broadband. The Internet Service Providers Association Awards was held at the Grosvenor Marriott Hotel. However, for the over-all ratings, it was still O2 who out-shined the competition. It has, so far, became to one to beat.
