Blog Archive - January 2010

Friday, January 29th 2010

Football fans will be able to enjoy a new way of watching their favourite players in action this weekend, as Sky prepares to preview its eagerly awaited 3D digital TV service.

While the platform is not expected to be launched officially in pubs until April, the company is planning to offer a taster by showing the Premier League clash between Arsenal and Manchester United in the format at nine specially selected locations across the UK on Sunday (January 31st).

The 3D service will then be made available to its residential customers later this year when compatible TVs hit the market.

Tuesday, January 26th 2010

Fresh from launching fibre optic cable broadband services for homeowners, BT has gone and done the same for businesses.

The new BT Business Total Broadband Fibre service is offering companies the chance to enjoy download speeds of up to 40Mbps through four packages priced from £30 a month.

A connection charge of £75 is included on all of the deals, along with an unlimited usage allowance and a BT Business Fibre Hub wireless router. Upload speeds of up to 10Mbps, which are thought to be the fastest available in the UK, are also available on two of the packages.

Monday, January 25th 2010

Sports fans across the UK may soon have the chance to experience football coverage in a whole new way thanks to digital TV provider Sky.

News that the company, which also offers digital TV and home phone services, is planning to broadcast live football in 3D before the end of this year is likely to be welcomed by many.

According to the Daily Mail, successful trials based on coverage of Champions League football, boxing and golf have shown the potential of the switch to such services.

Friday, January 22nd 2010

When it comes to household fibre optic broadband services, few companies have really had an impact to rival Virgin Media. The company's high-speed connections - which offer the fastest connection speeds in the UK - have marked the company out from other providers for several years, but it looks like all that could soon change.

BT's announcement of pricing details for its own fibre optic broadband service are likely to catch the eye of many, but will the so-called Infinity platform really become a strong rival to Virgin Media's offerings? It's early to say, but the initial signs are pretty good.

Thursday, January 21st 2010

Broadband provider TalkTalk has enjoyed a successful 12 months or so. Since announcing its acquisition of Tiscali last year, the company has grown to become the UK's largest residential broadband provider and even sponsored one of the UK's biggest TV shows, The X Factor.

However, the company has highlighted its latest ambitions to provide a strong challenge to rival broadband providers.

Charles Dunstone, the chief executive of both TalkTalk and its parent company Carphone Warehouse, has revealed that the firm could launch its own fibre optic broadband service to compete with BT, reports the Financial Times.

Wednesday, January 20th 2010

Despite being first announced in June last year, fibre optic cable broadband provider Virgin Media's eagerly anticipated music download service finally looks set to surface this year. According to Marketing magazine, the platform – which has been rather intriguingly named MusicFish – is expected to be online by the start of July.

The world of music downloads is complicated place at present, with a range of companies vying for the attentions of consumers.

While iTunes is arguably the most popular service, Virgin Media rival Sky also entered the sector towards the end of last year with an unlimited streaming and download platform.

Monday, January 18th 2010

Sky's monopoly over top sports coverage has long been a frustration to football fans who cannot afford it, but it has also had a significant impact on the popularity of rival digital TV services.

Take BT Vision for instance. While it offers on-demand TV and films - and also recently launched a new energy-efficient set-top box - just 436,000 people are subscribing to it. One of the big reasons behind the low figures – Sky has over nine million customers – is thought to be the lack of top sports coverage.

However, Ofcom could change all that if it succeeds with its efforts to force Sky to offer its premium sports and movie channels via rival platforms, such as BT Vision.

Friday, January 15th 2010

Demand for fibre optic cable broadband in the UK seems to be at an all-time high at the moment, but two regions which are more interested in the technology than most are Suffolk and Norfolk.

Some controversy has formed over whether broadband provider BT's efforts to introduce super-fast internet services are currently ignoring the areas, after the Eastern Daily Press revealed that none of the latest batch of exchanges to get the technology are in either region.

While business leaders have suggested the issue could lead many companies to move away from the areas and damage the local economy, BT has recently hit back in an interview with the Yarmouth Mercury.

Thursday, January 14th 2010

Virgin Media's range of digital TV, broadband and home phone services are proving popular with consumers, according to new research from Cable.co.uk.

The comparison website has revealed that two of the fibre optic cable broadband providers' leading packages have been the most popular deals among its consumers in recent times.

So why are the deals proving so popular? One of the deals is the company's Best Value Bundle, which is available for £18 a month and includes 10Mbps broadband, home phone and digital TV services featuring up to 60 channels such as Sky 1, Living and Bravo.

Cable.co.

Wednesday, January 13th 2010

The government's plans to fund the introduction of fibre optic cable broadband to 90 per cent of the UK have gained strong reactions in the past week or so.

While the Country Land & Business Association has called for the proposals to be extended so ten per cent does not miss out, other reactions have generally been positive.

One of the latest has been from Calderdale Council, with its business and economy leader telling the Halifax Courier that the investment would provide a welcome boost to the region.

As well as ensuring companies are well-connected, the move would also allow them to "compete on a global market", he added.

Monday, January 11th 2010

Broadband appears to be high on the government's agenda, if recent events are anything to go by. As well as launching a new fund for the widespread introduction of fibre optic cable broadband, Gordon Brown is also planning to offer free internet access to low-income households.

Expected to launch the £300 million initiative today (January 11th), Mr Brown will tell an education forum at Westminster that he wants "every family to become a broadband family", reports the Press Association.

"I can announce the nationwide rollout of our home access programme to get laptops and broadband at home for 270,000 families.

Friday, January 8th 2010

While it is the start of a new year, one issue continues to dominate the world of broadband. The launch and provision of fibre optic cable broadband services remains the hottest topic on the minds of both the government and providers at present.

Earlier this week, business secretary Lord Mandelson announced the launch of the government's fund to ensure super-fast internet services are available to 90 per cent of the country by 2017.

Announcing details of the fund, he said: "This investment is about bringing the future of broadband to areas of the country that would otherwise miss out.

Thursday, January 7th 2010

Despite having its critics in the past, 3D re-emerged with a vengeance in 2009. Channel 4 showed a season of content based in the format, while some of the year's biggest blockbusters also embraced the technology.

The next 12 months also look set to be huge for the concept, with broadband and digital TV provider Sky planning to launch a service based around it at some point in 2010.

While the launch of such platforms can raise compatibility issues, primarily due to the difficulties of buying the right equipment, the company has confirmed plans to make it as easy as possible for people to enjoy the next generation of broadcasting.

Tuesday, January 5th 2010

Despite recent research suggesting broadband customers are more concerned about connection reliability rather than speed, two recent developments seem to show that people are still keep on receiving super-fast services through fibre optic cable broadband.

The first is news that Dorset County Council wants local businesses to back a new scheme involving technology that will be provided in the region to sailing venues being used as part of the London 2012 Olympics.

It is hoped that the fibre optic services will be maintained after the sporting event has finished, allowing businesses to get access to high-speed internet services.

Monday, January 4th 2010

Equality has come to the broadband market, thanks to the launch of Be's new and improved Value package.

The company's new deal, which is now available at the permanently reduced price of £7.50 a month, is the cheapest in the UK to be available with no traffic shaping, so all data travelling across the network gets treated the same.

Most broadband providers tend to slow certain downloads or limit users' traffic, but such restrictions are a thing of the past with the new service.

After consulting with members, the company found that people prefer a limited connection to a traffic managed alternative.