LONDON, December 3, 2010 - Latin America is set for faster growth in fixed broadband penetration than even China or India over the next four years, according to a report from research group Analysys Mason. Keep Reading
LONDON, December 2, 2010 - The proliferation of cloud computing is increasing the dependence of both consumers and businesses on broadband access. Keep Reading
LONDON, November 1, 2010 - The United Kingdom’s first widely available 100 megabits per second fiber-to-the-home broadband service will be launched in December by the country’s dominant cable television operator Virgin Media, leading to a war of words with arch rival BT, the country’s former incumbent telecommunications carrier. Keep Reading
LONDON, October 25, 2010 - The U.K. government has decided to tap into the BBC’s income to help pay the estimated $1.35 billion cost of deploying super fast broadband to some rural parts of the country over the next seven years. Keep Reading
LONDON, October 18, 2010 - Convergence between fixed and mobile broadband services will be virtually complete by 2015, unified by standards originally developed for multi-room television in the home, according to analyst group IMS Research in its report :Convergence in the World Home Entertainment Market." The researchers predict that mobile soon will overtake fixed broadband connectivity, with over 3 billion wireless connected devices in the world by 2015. Keep Reading
LONDON, October 7, 2010 - The U.K. regulator Ofcom has shied away from enforcing network neutrality, but has urged service providers to be more transparent about their traffic shaping policies. There is also pressure for mobile service providers to stop discriminating against specific applications in order to enforce use of their own. Keep Reading
LONDON, October 1, 2010 - With online video now the main cause of internet bottlenecks and consumer frustration over poor performance, new ways are emerging to provide better picture quality within limited bandwidth under the banner of Adaptive Bit Rate Streaming. Keep Reading
LONDON, September 10, 2010 - The United Kingdom’s BBC-led internet television initiative known as Project Canvas is facing complaints and challenges from vested interests threatened by open access to premium video content and others. Keep Reading
LONDON, August 10, 2010 – U.K. regulator Ofcom has stepped up its efforts to close the gap between headline speeds advertised by the country’s internet service providers and real performance delivered. A new survey from ISPreview, an independent online source of broadband service information, revealed that dissatisfaction among U.K. subscribers is rising despite improvements in performance. Keep Reading
LONDON, August 4, 2010 - The plan announced this week by the United Arab Emirates to ban use of BlackBerry Messenger, e-mail and web browsing services by Oct. 11 unless the company allows it to access the encrypted messages on demand has drawn universal condemnation from freedom and privacy groups, but more a muted governmental response. Keep Reading
LONDON, July 26, 2010 - With the world moving toward cloud computing where services and data are delivered over broadband networks, many experts are concerned that countries are setting minimum bandwidth limits too low for future participation in the global economy. Keep Reading
LONDON, July 13, 2010 - The United Kingdom government is under pressure to increase funding for deployment of superfast broadband in rural areas following several public surveys confirming widespread support for positive discrimination in favor of the country’s remote communities. The “outside-in” approach of starting with rural areas first is supported by 62% of the population, according to the latest survey of 453 respondents by ISPreview.co.uk, an independent site dedicated to information about broadband services and providers. Furthermore 44% of all respondents wanted to go straight for fibre optic deployment in rural areas in a single hit, while only 20% agreed with the U.K. government’s plan to provide universal access at a basic rate of 2 Mbps first, with the aim of completing this by 2012. Keep Reading
LONDON, July 9, 2010 - Project Canvas, a bold attempt to make the Internet a major medium for TV distribution, is gathering steam in the United Kingdom, led by terrestrial broadcasters BBC and ITV, along with major telecommunication companies including the largest national carrier BT. The service, which will be launched under a new brand, possibly “YouView,” in early 2011, will allow U.K. consumers to watch broadcast programs including BBC channels as well as its iPlayer catch-up service, from their televisions via the Internet. Keep Reading
LONDON, July 6, 2010 - Fewer than 10 percent of U.S. consumers are familiar with the term femtocell, but when told about their benefits, 56 percent like what they hear and are prepared to pay their cell phone provider a premium for them. Keep Reading
LONDON, June 17, 2010 - The recently elected U.K. government plans to extent the scope of fiber unbundling by compelling gas, electricity and water utilities as well as the incumbent operator BT to open up their ducts to ISPs for fiber-to-the-home deployment. Keep Reading
LONDON, June 7, 2010 - Several factors are conspiring to make the 2010 football World Cup a testing time for Europe’s fixed and mobile broadband networks. The soccer tournament kicks off June 11 in South Africa. Europe has six of the world’s top eight footballing nations competing, and fanatical populations are desperate to keep up from office computers, mobile devices, home televisions or at a public venue for large-screen viewing. Keep Reading
LONDON, May 27, 2010 - A new era of austerity may be dawning in Europe in the wake of the Greek debt crisis and its cascading effect on other countries in the region, but broadband is set to escape the swinging spending cuts afflicting other sectors. Keep Reading
LONDON, May 11, 2010 - Bandwidth capping has been a contentious issue for internet service providers, but lifting the limits has also proved controversial in the United Kingdom, where it is allowing big operators to flex their network muscles. Keep Reading
LONDON, May 3, 2010 – Many Internet service providers are struggling to cope with the rapid growth of video traffic while trying to put a reasonable limit on the amount of bandwidth consumers can use. Keep Reading
LONDON, April 20, 2010 – Broadband is making strong inroads in Central and Eastern Europe, thanks to government and other incentives for providers to offer service in these previously bypassed areas. Keep Reading
LONDON, March 31, 2010 - The runaway success of the digitally dazzling movies Avatar and Alice in Wonderland has boosted hopes among satellite and cable television operators that their emerging 3-D services will gain significant traction despite the high cost for the TV set and goggles. However, more 3-D means greater use of already scarce broadband. Keep Reading
LONDON, March 23, 2010 - European reaction to the new U.S. broadband plan has been mixed, ranging from high praise to dismissal as a flawed catch-up exercise. Keep Reading
LONDON, March 12, 2010 - The United Kingdom’s largest cable operator, Virgin Media, has started a six-month trial of broadband services delivered by fiber attached to overhead telegraph poles installed almost a century ago, following relaxation of government rules. Keep Reading
LONDON, March 11, 2010 - European countries are adopting measures to reach 100 percent broadband penetration - and they’re going to reach that goal well before the United States. Keep Reading
The unprecedented success of smart mobile devices like the iPhone has brought on the bandwidth crunch for mobile broadband services sooner than expected. Communications policymakers, regulators, businesses and others are looking at various remedies to alleviate the problem, including Content Distribution Networks. CDNs distribute popular video and other material to servers located closer to the… Keep Reading