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TalkTalk Add ‘Magic Desktop’ Child Safety Internet App
TalkTalk (talktalk.co.uk) has launched a free child safety Internet app, known as the Magic Desktop, for all its customers.
The Magic Desktop suite of applications enables parents to introduce their kids to the Internet in a child-friendly environment.
Parents can use services such as ‘My First Browser’ to create a white list of websites their child can visit. They can also use ‘Magic Mail’ to put together a list of approved email contacts.
Children can also undertake various learning exercises and upon completion build up a points tally that they can use to play games.
Commenting on Magic Desktop, TalkTalk’s Sylvain Thevenot said: “We are very pleased to be able to offer this product for free to our customers”.
Thevenot continued: “Magic Desktop gives children a great introduction to computers and the internet and parents can have peace of mind that they can give their child the freedom to explore but can minimise risks and help children behave safer online”.
TalkTalk customers can see a demo of the free Magic Desktop application at http://www.talktalk.co.uk/magic-desktop/demo.
HSPA+ Mobile Broadband To Ease Network Strain
HSPA+ technology could be deployed by UK mobile broadband operators to help ease the strain on their networks, according to mobile industry analysts Informa.
The technology will be used as an interim measure from the current HSPA to the future LTE Mobile Broadband which promises speeds up to 150Mbps without the bottlenecks.
Informa claim that mobile broadband operators are feeling the strain of increased users and estimate that by 2012 mobile data traffic could increase by up to 25 times.
Talking to PCPro, Dimitris Mavrakis from Informa said: “The networks in developed markets in the UK and the US are starting to saturate. We see a lot of bottlenecks in data-centric areas such as London and New York”.
According to Mavrakis, the next generation of mobile broadband, known as LTE (Longer Term Evolution) will ease the pressure on mobile broadband networks.
However, despite rollout of this new technology starting early next year, full implementation may not be until 2012 or later.
With this in mind, experts like Informa believe mobile broadband operators will add HSPA+ technology to their existing networks to ease the strain prior to LTE arriving.
50p Broadband Tax Plan Slammed By Tories
The Government’s plan to implement a 50p broadband tax to fund the nationwide roll out of fast broadband has been slammed by the Tories.
The 50p tax to be levied on every home with a fixed telephone line was proposed by the Government in its Digital Britain report and expected to raise up to £175 million.
According to the Tories though, such an unpopular tax will result in failure to install minimum broadband speeds of 2Mbps across the UK by 2012 as ISP’s will rely on state funding rather than invest themselves.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Nick Herbert, the shadow Environment Secretary and Jeremy Hunt, the shadow Culture Secretary said: “The incentive for operators to invest is destroyed as everyone focuses not on consumers but how to get more state handout”.
They continued: “The tax has been earmarked to encourage investment in modern fibre optic networks – but telecom operators will have no incentive to make any investment of their own if there is the chance to tap into subsidy”.
According to the Conservatives, nearly 170,000 households in the UK are unable to access the internet, while 11% of all UK homes can only access slow broadband speeds.
Tory proposals would involve breaking up BT’s infrastructure monopoly and allowing other providers access to it, which in turn would increase competition and drive roll out to rural areas aswell.
BSkyB (Sky) Tops 2.3 Million Broadband Customers
BSkyB (sky.com) has topped 2.3 million broadband customers following the announcement of its most recent quartely results.
The results which date up until 30th September show that that Sky has added over 100,000 new broadband customers in the quarter.
This is still, however, a slight downturn in comparison to the same period last year where the company added 164,000 new customers to its broadband base.
In a statement, BSkyB said: “We are making good progress on improving the returns on our investment in broadband and telephony. Higher penetration of telephony products, combined with a continued focus on cost efficiency, saw operating losses for the quarter almost halve year on year to £19 million”.
The statement continued: “This was despite the costs associated with migrating existing customers from partial to full unbundling. At 30th September we had enabled over 70% of our exchanges and had more than 150,000 fully unbundled customers”.
BSkyB’s total broadband base now stands at 2,303,000, up from 2,203,000 in the second quarter.
Part of the increase in Sky’s broadband customer base has been due to the success of its bundled TV, broadband and telephone packages which are now taken by 17% of Sky’s 9.54 million pay TV customers.
Further information on Sky’s broadband, TV and phone packages can be found at the sky.com website or our Sky Broadband, TV & Phone review.
Filesharers May Face Court Before Broadband Cut
Suspected illegal fileshares could be faced with a court order before having their broadband disconnected, according to comments made by the UK’s Culture Secretary, Ben Bradshaw.
There has been plenty of opposition towards the government’s plan to give more power to the music and entertainment industry which would force ISP’s to cut off the broadband connection of suspected illegal fire sharers without prior warning.
Therefore, Mr Bradshaw’s suggestion that a court order should first be used to prove a users guilt before they are disconnected is perceived to be good news.
Mr Bradshaw said, “It wouldn’t just happen on the basis of accusation. First there would need to be a court order for any of the technical measures.”
Record labels are also in agreement that warning letters should be followed up to eliminate persistent file sharing. They state that “any technical measures deemed necessary and appropriate by the Secretary of State” would be welcome to try to stop illegal downloads.
When speaking about the government’s retreat from the technical clampdown on persistent file sharers, James Alexander the Deloitte Media Partner, said it was definitely no surprise.
He said, “Perhaps this reflects that it was only intended as a shot across the bows by the government to deter people who think illegal downloading is an acceptable activity, as opposed to determined and technically adept criminals.”
Ultimately the government will determine what measures to enforce on November 18th in the Digital Economy Bill. No doubt up until that point there will be various other suggestions added as to what would be the best way to stop illegal piracy.
Plusnet Launch 20Mbps Premium Broadband
Plusnet (plus.net) has launched a new 20Mbps Premium broadband package which is priced from just £11.99 a month.
Plusnet Premium Broadband replaces their previous Unlimited package and offers speeds up to 20Mbps using ADSL2+ technology.
A monthly 80GB usage allowance is provided, with un-metered usage offered during off peak times.
Plusnet Premium is available on a 12 month contract while there is also a no contract option for subscribers willing to pay a one-off £30 set up fee.
The no contract option means customers can leave Plusnet when they choose by giving the ISP just 10 days’ notice. No penalties apply.
The company’s popular Pro package, which offers prioritised traffic at peak periods, has also been given a speed boost to up to 20Mbps. It’s usage limit has also been increased from 15GB to 20GB.
In a further move, Plusnet has added free 0845 and 0870 calls to its range of Talk Plans.
Further information on Plusnet’s new 20Mbps broadband packages can be found at the plus.net website.
