All the latest broadband news from the Broadband Genie news team.
Following the release of Grand Theft Auto IV, UK ISP PlusNet reported that the amount of gamers using the multiplayer online function the day after were the highest ever in the history of online gaming.
Selling almost one million copies in its first week the Microsoft Xbox 360 console uses peer-to-peer methods to manage the multiplayer features of the game, allowing users to play along with fellow Grand Theft Auto gamers the world over.
PlusNet confirmed that in the early hours of the morning (4am to 7am) after the release an increase in gaming traffic was noticed between 15% and 35% compared to the same day the week before. Later in the morning the biggest increase was noted with up to 65% more gaming traffic per hour. This lowered to around 30-40% later in the day.
PlusNet reported that up to 90,000 of its customers were using their broadband service for gaming purposes the day after Grand Theft Auto IV’s release. However, the effect on traffic management was kept to minimum disruption as the ISP prepared for the game’s popularity in advance.
Source: Community from PlusNet
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The Carphone Warehouse has confirmed that it has put in an offer of £550 million in order to own the British broadband assets of the Italian broadband operator Tiscali.
Founder of Carphone Warehouse, Charles Dunstone has also confirmed that a £1.1bn deal has been struck with American electronics giants, Best Buy in order to redevelop its 2,400 stores in a joint venture in the US. Under the specified terms, Carphone Warehouse and Phone House will remain as high street stores and Dunstone will still retain his stake in the company, now standing at over 30 per cent.
Under a long-term plan, the money generated from the sale to Best Buy will be used to buy out struggling rivals, Tiscali being the first.
Whilst the Tiscali deal is by no means closed as number of other preliminary bids have been offered, the show of interest from Carphone Warehouse seems to be a bid with strong potential. It has been confirmed that a final decision will be made by Tiscali’s chief executive Mario Rosso in a board meeting on the 12th May.
Source: Mad.co.uk
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AOL has announced that they are to team up with the music service site, Last.fm and launch a new AOL Radio online station in Europe.
The new Radio AOL online radio station will give users the opportunity to search for and stream music from a collection of hundreds of artists as many times as they want.
Currently, although Last.fm offers a vast collection of musical artists and tracks many songs have a limit on the amount of times a tune can be played.
As well as musical tracks the new AOL service will also provide a range of streaming video content, event listening and the popular Last.fm tagging service. Also, as with the established Last.fm site, with an account set up, rating songs and enabling ‘scrobbing’ (a feature that notes and record tracks played on your computer) to create a profile that can recommend songs according to personal taste.
Jonathan Lister, senior vice president of AOL European Operations, said: “I am thrilled that this partnership with enable AOL’s users to discover and actively engage with new music and genres – thus creating an online community of music fans that spans the globe.”
Source: PC Advisor
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Internet Service Provider, PlusNet launched a new service this week that will help customers keep track of their monthly broadband usage allowance.
After a survey carried out by YouGov research revealed that almost 78 per cent of broadband users were unaware of how much of their monthly usage allowance they had used up during each term, PlusNet has launched a ‘Broadband Calculator’.
Available at www.mybroadbandusage.co.uk, the Broadband Calculator not only tallies up usage but also offers advice on whether customers are signed up to the right package. An interactive tool of high bandwidth applications also advises users on the typical usage for streaming TV, online radio, general browsing or downloading music.
“Using your broadband with no idea of your limit, or level of consumption, is like making calls on your mobile phone without checking your bill or even knowing what contract you’re signed up to,” said Neil Armstrong from PlusNet. “Consumers don’t know what effect music and video is going to have on the quality of their broadband and the bills they might face. Our calculator is designed to stop that once and for all, ensuring consumers are absolutely clear and confident with the broadband choices they have made.”
The survey also revealed that 27 per cent of users are unaware of what their service limit is, risking the dangers of being penalised for falling out of their download cap or even their ‘fair use’ policy.
Source: PlusNet
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The south coast town of Bournemouth has been revealed to be the first UK town to benefit from a new sewer-housed fibre network capable of speeds up to 100Mbit/s.
Driven by H20 Networks the new project will provide the fastest broadband the UK has ever seen to more than 88,000 homes for a price of around £30m.
With backing from Bournemouth Borough Council the new, fast speed connection is hoped to attract more businesses to the area.
H20 Networks managing director Elfed Thomas commented on the imminent cable installation: “This will be the world’s largest single fibre deployment,” he said. “It’s not just a one-off. We are working with our partners here and overseas to create more Fibre Cities.”
Installation of the sewer-based fibres will begin in September and is expected to take over two years. Split into five stages, each stage will cover more than 17,000 homes and offices. However, before work starts H20 has revealed that it will write to Bournemouth residents to seek permission to carry out the work.
H20 Networks will merely act as the network owner, so for the moment it’s not known how the Internet Service Providers will charge residents for the improved service.
If the project is a success, H20 Networks has estimated that the whole of the UK could benefit from the sewerage installation within a few years at a cost of around £15bn.
Source: The Register
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BT customers will be able to access broadband on the move thanks to a new mobile broadband service launched today.
In conjunction with Taiwanese manufacturer HTC, BT are launching a new broadband mobile phone that will allow customers to use the internet both inside and outside of their home. With prices starting from £23.99 for the first three months, the broadband package known as BT Total Broadband Anywhere costs an extra £5 a month more than the price of BT Total Broadband Option 3.
The new BT Total Broadband Anywhere includes a BT Home Hub whilst the choice of two BT ToGo smartphones, either the HTC S620 or S710, both powered by Microsoft Windows Mobile 6 will provide access to the internet whilst outside of the home thanks to BT’s WiFi network.
In terms of price plans, the Anywhere package will include unlimited use of the internet at home or within a BT WiFi zone, but there will also be a limited number of free mobile minutes and texts included too when using BT’s standard mobile network. This is currently set at a 10MB monthly download allowance, 50 call minutes and 50 texts for the cheapest Anywhere 50 package.
Speaking about the new services John Petter, managing director, Consumer at BT, said: “Communications services are converging, and it is clear that customers want consistent access to the things that matter not only at home, but in the palm of their hands wherever they are. When shopping, waiting for a train or having a coffee, Broadband Anywhere enables you to read e-mails, check the football score or compare prices.”
Source: BT Plc.
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Panasonic has announced that it will introduce a new intercontinental, high-speed internet service – ExConnect to flights from early 2009. The last internet service available on aircraft closed down in 2006, when Boeing’s Connexion was pulled following financial difficulties. Following the 2001 terrorist attacks in the US, American air companies failed to sign on to an in-flight broadband deal hence, the new Panasonic deal will be the first globally embraced in-flight broadband system.
ExConnect is set to offer broadband speeds at a standard of public internet hot-spots, and will also give airlines the opportunity to feed live television into the aircraft’s in-flight entertainment system.
Although prices haven’t been set for the ExConnect service it has been estimated that the fees will be around £6 per hour or £11 per day and will be a good option for regular flyers. Panasonic has confirmed that airline customers have already signed up to use ExConnect.
Source: PC Advisor
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Under warning from UK communications regulator Ofcom, O2 has announced that it has met the 3G coverage obligation that was imposed eight years ago for providing mobile broadband.
O2 3G coverage is now available to at least 80 per cent of the UK population. Previously they were the only 3G licensee to fail to provide the coverage target and were in line for receiving a £40m penalty fee.
The company are now in the process of a £500m upgrade to its 3G network and working towards increasing download speeds. A review will be carried out again by Ofcom at the end of this year to ensure that service requirements are being met.
Source: Silicon.com
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Wireless broadband systems provider Novatel Wireless has announced that it is to distribute its USB mobile internet modem, the Ovation MC930D through O2.
Small enough to fit into a pocket, the Ovation MC930D will be distributed to new mobile broadband customers in Europe. It will be capable of download speeds of 7.2Mbps and upload speeds of 2.1 Mbps on any HSPDA/HSUPA network supporting the 2100 MHz band.
Speaking about the new device offering, Ian Clarke, devices and solutions director of O2 UK, said: “With the launch of O2 Mobile Broadband and the success of our home broadband service we can now deliver to customers a high quality internet experience at home and on the move. The MC930D is an important part of this quality offering, providing customers with a stylish and easy to use USB modem.”
Source: CBR
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Mobile broadband operator 3 has announced that it has cut the price of packages for existing customers and those that subscribe before the 31st May 2008 by 50%. For those that sign up with an 18 or 24-month contract a free USB Modem will also be thrown in to the package.
Not merely a short-term promotion the customer will be able to keep to this price level for life.
For 18 and 24-month contracts the new price plans are set out as follows:
Source: 3
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