NTL Media Release (UK)

ralphaverbuch

NTL Media Release

NTL Broadband now richer, faster and better value than BT

· NTL extends access to award-winning broadband products
· 512Kbps service boosted to 600Kbps - almost 20% faster than DSL · First year cost of broadband from NTL - over 50% cheaper than BT

London, 20 September 2002 - NTL, the UK's biggest provider of broadband services, today announced a series of initiatives to cement its broadband leadership position.

* NTL is turning up the speed of its 512Kbps broadband service to
600Kbps, providing a clear differential between its mid-tier service and DSL. The cost of this unique service remains unchanged at £24.99 per month
(BT Openworld operates at up to 512Kbps for £29.99 per month). The company
is adding further value by increasing the number of email addresses per connection from 5 to 15, while web space is increased from 10MB to 55MB (BT Openworld offers 10 and 50MB, respectively).

* NTL is rolling out an innovative new 'stand alone' broadband cable
modem product, extending access to its three high speed internet services. NTL expects most customers to also subscribe to either telephone or digital television services, or both, but unlike subscribing to BT's DSL Broadband (which requires subscribers to take a BT telephone service), there will be no compulsion. The roll out is due to be completed by 1 October.

* NTL is offering new broadband customers free installation of its
600Kbps service, saving up to £75. The offer runs to 31 December 2002. As a result, customers subscribing this year to the new NTL stand alone product could pay less than 50% of the cost of broadband from BT Openworld in their first year. See Notes.

* NTL has also been busy upgrading its network to extend access to its
broadband services. New areas coming on line include Londonderry, Leicester, Southampton, Norwich, Westminster, Great Yarmouth and Sunderland. Broadband access from NTL is now available to almost 7 million UK homes.

NTL in London has been rapidly building out its broadband service and by the Autumn this year will be offering it to half of the homes on its network in the Capital. Broadband has recently been launched in the City of Westminster. A dedicated programme is now underway to provide the service in other areas of London, the first of the areas to be released will be Greenwich & Lewisham which will be launching at the beginning of 2003 with more areas being released over the following months.

"Choosing a broadband provider has never been easier," says Bill Goodland, Director of Internet at NTL, "NTL is now faster, better and cheaper than BT."

"We remain the UK's consumer champion for high speed internet currently having over 300,000 residential customers. We have given the highest service innovation through our range of 128K, 512K and 1Megabit products, and the free conversion of 512K service to 600K is yet another example of our increased commitment to our customers. We're giving them the best deal in town," says Aizad Hussain, Managing Director of NTL Home.

- Ends -

Kevok

Ummmm k, so in Britain, they have hot competition in the broadband market.

Well at least we're getting there with the competition in prepaid internet access (essentially thats what EsatBT and UTVip are offering).

Baby steps. Baby steps.

ralphaverbuch

That's debateable - some would argue that it depends on whether it's an anytime service or not. None of the Irish services are, as yet, flat rate 24/7...

RA

spongebob

NTL Broadband and ESAT DSL are flatrate 24/7 as is one of the Eircom packages ...the most expensive one of course. Leap is too.

Availability limited of course.

Competition as in 3 possible providers exists only in a small corner of Harolds Cross, D6W.

M

ralphaverbuch

you're right - i meant to say modem based dial-up open to the whole of the country... of course, i'd like dsl preferably

LFCFan

This is just another example of how incompetent Irish businesses are. NTL obvioulsy still employ the old Cablelink people so this is the reason why they are so useless compared to their English counterparts. Why is it that NTL UK can roll out broadband to so many, yet NTL Ireland manage feck all and then have to stop, even though Ireland is a hell of a lot smaller than England. It makes my blood boil at the inadequacies in the Irish Market.

Dustaz

Read the other threads concerning ntl LFCfan.

The reason they cant roll out is because the cablelink network is old and outdated. To upgrade it to 2-way is a financially large undertaking and not one they are going to achieve overnight.

If the demand becomes large enough (and its not at the moment), they may speed it up.

LFCFan

that's like saying. I failed 2nd year in college because I did no work in 1st year. Why is the network old and out dated? It's because Cablelink let it get that way. Did NTL UK start off with a top of the range network? I'm sure they had to upgrade. And if they didn't then why didn't Cablelink start off with a better network strategy? Companies now can't keep using the excuse that their predecessors were useless.

spongebob

Yo!

Q1

Did NTL UK start off with a top of the range network? I'm sure they had to upgrade.

Yes and No to tose respectively, they started off with Fibre/CoAx Hybrid. Their network is hardly 10 years old.

Q2

why didn't Cablelink start off with a better network strategy

Their strategy when they started off was in essence.
a) about 30 years ago Dublin had loads of big ugly aerials pirating TV from the UK
b) RTE (the State) took over the pirating of UK TV and as the cable was run out in the 1970's they removed the aerials and Dublin looks less ugly ....to a degree.
c) I don't know what you mean LFCFan, I think that 20 years of a state owned TV Piracy network ...before royalties became an issue....is a Brilliant network strategy.

Then NTL bought this POS for a ridiculous amount a few years back. NTL also own Galway and Waterford cables where the cable is less than 15 years old. Those systems are also a total POS despite being half the age of much of Dublin.

M

pork99

Then NTL bought this POS for a ridiculous amount a few years back.

You have put finger on it yet again Muck

I seem to remember that one of the key selling points for the Dublin cable network that Cablelink came up with when they flogging it to NTL was that people in Dublin will pay top prices for inferior services. Very attractive I'm sure.

spongebob

As you so put it

people in Dublin will pay top prices for inferior services

said the man selling Cablelink to NTL.

The man who Actually Sold Cablelink to NTL was working for Eircom so he should be better aware than most of what the Dubs will shell out for.

In case I forgot me manners 3 years ago when NTL first arrived, welcome to the E-Tub of Europe ®™©™® lads.

M

pork99

very interesting link there

"RTE decided that if viewers were going to watch channels other than its own, it might as well make money from it."

When ITV launched in 1955 they stole BBC TV's audience. The BBC could not resort to the parasitic tactics mentioned above, they had to respond by improving their services. Look at the quality of proramming on BBC compared to RTE today, even allowing for the difference in revenue RTE makes pretty low standard programmes.

But it seems to be typical of this country that you do not innovate, you do not put much real effort into customer service, just grab control of something and then gouge people for access to it, like some sort of feudal baron.

spongebob

That brings us neatly to how Sir AJF O'Reilly(Bart) , the public face of Eircom got into Telecoms in the first place in a kinda

just grab control of something and then gouge people for access to it, like some sort of feudal baron

sort of way....even though he actually accepted his Baronetage form Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the II, Queen of ....ya know the rest ..... only recently and was NOT a proper baron back then.

The land grab in question was MMDS in the late 80's and early 90's and the results of that have now mutated into

The Thing We Call Chorus

Eircom is his second attempt at a land grab in the sector....well maybe second proper attempt as there was also Internet Ireland.

M

pork99

and was NOT a proper baron back then

some respect for our Liege Lord please!!!

I hope, like me, you will be around to his castle with tribute of a brace of fat hogs and a dozen firkins of mead come Michaelmas.

spongebob

<grovel and lick and tongue right in there>

/me now goes to hardware shop to order the plywood and four be fours, nails and paint in order that my Potemkin Village be ready for his Lordship to survey on his way to his castle at christmas.

Particular attention will be paid to not having sky minidishes on any of the newly painted hovels and to not showing a white box on his lordships pole .....any of his poles as it happens....lest the erroneous impression be given that his lordship[ is short of wire..

unlike some of his ungrateful vassals, weather no deterrent to work being completed on time and budget to lordly spec.

</grovel and lick and tongue right in there>

pork99

my Lordship doth exercise his "jus primae noctis" on a bi-monthly basis upon all his vassals, when all the wains and villains doth cry out, "verrily, screwed by eircom once again!"

http://90.1911encyclopedia.org/J/JU/JUS_PRIMAE_NOCTIS.htm
http://www.fibri.de/jus/arthbes.htm

'tis a privilege to serve!

Dustaz

Originally posted by pork99
Look at the quality of proramming on BBC compared to RTE today, even allowing for the difference in revenue RTE makes pretty low standard programmes.

this is simply not true. But dont discuss it, its even more off topic than the thread already is