News

Network hardware

• August 31, 2010 31 Aug'10

  Intel pays £905m to buy Infineon’s wireless chip business

  Intel is planning to buy the wireless division of German company Infineon Technologies for $1.4bn (£905m).

• August 27, 2010 27 Aug'10

  We can work it out, RIM tells India over access demands

  BlackBerry maker Research In Motion has offered to set up an industry forum to address the Indian government's concerns about its products' unhackability.

• August 25, 2010 25 Aug'10

  Net neutrality: do you feel lucky?

  The buzz created by the Google-Verizon proposals on net neutrality to the US Federal Communications Commission has given impetus to consultations on the topic by Ofcom and the European Commission. What is less clear is why CIOs should care about the...

• August 24, 2010 24 Aug'10

  4G to start to take off in 2012

  The roll-out of 4G networks will get underway by 2012, with the number of LTE mobile broadband subscribers expected to exceed 300 million globally by 2015, according to a report from Juniper Research

• August 23, 2010 23 Aug'10

  Avaya and BT extend global agreement

  Avaya and BT to continue working together

• August 23, 2010 23 Aug'10

  Ofcom to give away 4G spectrum during London Olympics

  Ofcom aims to reserve frequencies in the 2.6GHz band, currently set aside for mobile broadband, for TV cameras at the 2012 Olympics.

• August 19, 2010 19 Aug'10

  IT teams fly in to help Pakistan flood victims

  Emergency IT specialists are often the first boots on the ground in a major crisis. While largely behind the scenes, they are a critical part of the mission…

• August 19, 2010 19 Aug'10

  Ofcom reveals massive surge in use of multimedia

  The average person spends half their waking hours using communication devices, according to research from industry regulator Ofcom.

• August 18, 2010 18 Aug'10

  Android game app conceals GPS tracker

  A malicious application that conceals spyware and GPS tracking behind a mobile phone game has been discovered in the Android app store.

• August 18, 2010 18 Aug'10

  Wimax 2 could become standard next year

  An update to the Wimax wireless networking standard, Wimax 2, is expected to be standardised by the IEEE by late next year, improving download speeds for mobile devices…

• August 17, 2010 17 Aug'10

  VOA rates leave network operators reeling

  The Valuation Office Agency’s decisions to exclude BT from a £20 levy on all homes connected to next generation networks and to maintain its protection of larger network operators has shocked the communications industry.

• August 16, 2010 16 Aug'10

  Google could use Paypal for Android payments

  Google is reported to be in talks with Paypal about integrating the eBay-owned payment service with the search giant's Android smartphone software.

  Google...

• August 16, 2010 16 Aug'10

  Broadband homes face £20 tax

  Non-BT networks will have to pay a £20 tax for every home they connect to a fibre-based next-generation network, according to proposals from the Valuation Office Agency.

• August 16, 2010 16 Aug'10

  India could get workaround to view encrypted Blackberry data

  Research in Motion and the Indian government are believed to be developing a workaround to allow security agencies to read encrypted Blackberry data....

• August 16, 2010 16 Aug'10

  Protesters picket Google offices over 'end of net neutrality'

  Protestors have gathered outside Google's offices to rally against proposals which they believe could undermine net neutrality.

• August 13, 2010 13 Aug'10

  RIM reassures Blackberry users as governments demand encryption key

  Blackberry maker Research in Motion says it will not make country-specific deals as it attempts to work with governments threatening to block its services.

• August 12, 2010 12 Aug'10

  Cisco reports 79% rise in profit

  Networks giant Cisco has reported strong fourth quarter 2010 results, with sales of $10.8bn, an increase of more than 28% compared to Q4 2009.

  For...

• August 11, 2010 11 Aug'10

  SMEs alarmed at rumours of death of net neutrality

  Growth in the small business sector will be stunted if internet service providers decide to charge a premium for faster speeds, it has been claimed.

• August 11, 2010 11 Aug'10

  Buckingham tracks roadworks online in real time

  Buckinghamshire has developed what it claims is the first website in the UK to provide live highways maintenance information to the public.

• August 11, 2010 11 Aug'10

  Vtesse fills broadband 'not spot' in Birch Green

  Broadband minister Ed Vaizey opened a fibre-to-the-cabinet project in Birch Green, Hertfordshire on Tuesday that will see some 200 homes in the former "not...

• August 11, 2010 11 Aug'10

  Vaizey backtracks on promise to review fibre tax

  The government has gone back on a pre-election promise to review business rates on fibre networks, which are said to be the single biggest inhibitor of investment in next-generation networks.

• August 11, 2010 11 Aug'10

  South Korean police raid Google’s Seoul office

  South Korean police have raided Google's office in Seoul as part of an investigation into the company's collection of private Wi-Fi data.

• August 10, 2010 10 Aug'10

  DNSSEC not a panacea for cybercrime, but a step in the right direction

  The global roll-out in mid-July of technology aimed at making the internet safer was billed as a decisive blow against cyber criminals, but has it made a difference?

• August 10, 2010 10 Aug'10

  Google and Verizon unveil net neutrality plan

  Former net neutrality adversaries Google and Verizon have announced a compromise plan aimed a keeping the internet free and open.

• August 09, 2010 09 Aug'10

  Skype to raise $100m in NYSE listing

  Skype, the world's biggest communications service provider measured by minutes, is to raise an estimated $100m through a listing on the Nasdaq exchange.

• August 09, 2010 09 Aug'10

  BT Vision glitch hits Sky Sports viewers

  A glitch in BT Vision left some customers unable to view the Sky Sports channels over the weekend.

  The company was hit by hundreds of complaints over...

• August 09, 2010 09 Aug'10

  Inmarsat to set up global 50Mbps satellite broadband network

  Inmarsat is to spend $1.2bn to build a new global satellite-based network to deliver data speeds up to 50Mbps on demand to customers from 2014.

• August 06, 2010 06 Aug'10

  Google-backed IP satellite operator to compete with fibre networks

  A Google-backed satellite network operator, O3b, has signed a long-term agreement with Europe Media Port to provide gigabit IP network connectivity and bandwidth services to clients located in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East.

• August 06, 2010 06 Aug'10

  Google’s Street View cars return to UK roads

  Google's Street View vehicles are to hit the UK roads again this week after the entire fleet was grounded over concerns about Wi-Fi snooping.

• August 05, 2010 05 Aug'10

  Indespension aims for 50% saving with outsourced network

  Trailer manufacturer Indespension is improving its communications infrastructure through a £50,000 deal with IT services provider Imerja.

  Imerja is...

• August 04, 2010 04 Aug'10

  London councils to deliver public services via mobile phones

  London council services are being mobile-enabled in a bid to cut costs and interact with people lacking broadband access.

• August 04, 2010 04 Aug'10

  Mobile TV services are being outstripped by Wi-Fi phones

  The ability to receive free-to-air terrestrial television networks via cellphones is shrinking the market for dedicated mobile TV services, according to...

• August 03, 2010 03 Aug'10

  Should IT departments take the tablet?

  As major technology providers plan to introduce tablet devices in the UK over the coming months, how will tablets impact IT departments?

• August 03, 2010 03 Aug'10

  French Connection uses social media feedback to improve online retail sales

  French Connection has implemented a social media feedback platform on its website from Bazaarvoice to improve its understanding of customers.

• August 03, 2010 03 Aug'10

  Domain name sales push up profits for VeriSign in Q2

  Internet infrastructure service provider VeriSign reported a rise in profits in the second quarter following increased sales from its domain name registration business.

• August 03, 2010 03 Aug'10

  Average UK broadband speeds crawl past 5Mbps

  The average UK broadband speed has increased by 0.91Mbps to 5.106Mbps, following

• August 03, 2010 03 Aug'10

  CIOs drive app development to understand customers

  Developing business applications is a top priority for CIOs for 2010. Forty six per cent of CIOs surveyed said they were actively developing their CRM applications. In the survey of 200 CIOs by Vodafone, data collection was the second highest ...

• August 03, 2010 03 Aug'10

  Routine encryption and policing could prevent most data losses, says security report

  Most data losses in the past six months could have been avoided, according to the mid-year security threat report from Sophos.

• August 03, 2010 03 Aug'10

  HP pays $47m to settle US overcharging case

  Hewlett-Packard has reached a $47m settlement with the US Department of Justice (DoJ) over claims the supplier overcharged the government on multiple federal contracts.

• August 02, 2010 02 Aug'10

  Saudi and UAE could freeze Blackberry service

  More than one million Blackberry users in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates may be blocked from key services after authorities increased demands for access to encrypted messages sent over the device.

• July 30, 2010 30 Jul'10

  Roadmap to Broadband Britain released

  The government has published its roadmap to introduce national universal access to a minimum 2Mbps broadband service.

• July 30, 2010 30 Jul'10

  Lunchtime surfers put strain on company bandwidth

  Heavy internet usage during lunch hours could be putting too much pressure on companies' bandwidth.

• July 30, 2010 30 Jul'10

  Intel shows silicon laser chip for 50Gbit/s links

  Intel has stepped up its interest in using optical fibres for high speed interconnects in processor-based systems.

• July 30, 2010 30 Jul'10

  UK largely missing from state of the internet reports

  The UK barely rates on content distributor Akamai's "state of the internet" report, despite successive governments' pledges to "digitise" Britain.

• July 30, 2010 30 Jul'10

  Will BT be the big winner from spectrum auction?

  Communications minister Ed Vaizey has set the end of 2011 as the closing date for the auction of so-called 4G spectrum.

• July 29, 2010 29 Jul'10

  Virgin Media posts record sales for second quarter 2010

  Telecoms firm has reported record growth for the second quarter, with sales increasing 7.1% between April and June this year

• July 29, 2010 29 Jul'10

  Cost-cutting boosts BT's profits

  Despite falling revenue, BT saw its profits climb to £375m for the first three months to 30 June, up 38 % compared to the same period last year.

  The...

• July 29, 2010 29 Jul'10

  Cardiff University invests £1m in infrastructure upgrade

  Cardiff University has invested £1m in its IT network as part of an ongoing upgrade to its infrastructure.

• July 28, 2010 28 Jul'10

  4G spectrum auction set for late 2011

  The long-awaited auction for so-called 4G mobile licences will take place at the end of 2011, communications minister Ed Vaizey announced on Wednesday.

• July 28, 2010 28 Jul'10

  Pacnet, Pacific Fibre, to light up cable competition

  Pacnet and Pacfic Fibre will team to construct a new trans-pacific cable, which will operate at 5.1 terabits per second.

• July 27, 2010 27 Jul'10

  CIO interview: Greater London Authority ramps up IT while cutting costs

  The GLA is in a unique position for a public sector body - taking on more responsibilities, a potentially higher budget, and employing more staff as it absorbs the work of other organisations that are likely to be closed.

• July 27, 2010 27 Jul'10

  iPhone jailbreaking not illegal, says US government

  The US government has given iPhone users the go-ahead to bypass electronic protection on Apple's iPhones to enable them to use any wireless service provider.

• July 23, 2010 23 Jul'10

  Wi-fi mobiles threaten 3G revenues

  Most consumers will be using mobile handsets with chipsets that provide Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS (Global Positioning System) within the next five years, says market researcher ABI Research.

• July 23, 2010 23 Jul'10

  Ofcom excludes business networks from fixed, mobile broadband report

  Business network interests are to be excluded from communications regulator Ofcom's assessment of the availability of fixed and mobile broadband coverage for its first report on communications infrastructure under the new Digital Economy Act.

• July 22, 2010 22 Jul'10

  Nokia profits plunge as smartphone sales rise 1%

  Smartphone sales and currency movements helped Nokia report a 1% rise in sales to €10bn for the second quarter of 2010, but operating profit plunged 15%...

• July 22, 2010 22 Jul'10

  No room for BT complacency, said chairman

  BT chairman Sir Michael Rake said the previous financial year had been a "year of delivery" at the company's annual general meeting in Liverpool today.

• July 21, 2010 21 Jul'10

  Why the ACCC thinks carrier Ethernet is important

  The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has indicated it may include Ethernet services in its list of Domestic Transmission Capacity Services. Richard Chirgwin analyses the implications of the move.

• July 21, 2010 21 Jul'10

  Using 3G as a backup WAN

  3G data services are often advanced as a cheap way to provide a disaster recovery service for your WAN. But experts say you need to do more than just cut from one link to another to create a functional connection.

• July 20, 2010 20 Jul'10

  Farnborough Air Show: wireless service transfers aircraft flight data at gate

  Airlines are testing a high-capacity wireless service that will allow aircraft to share on-board flight data and maintenance data with the airline's IT systems in real time when planes land at an airport gate.

• July 20, 2010 20 Jul'10

  NSN consolidates second place with $1.2bn Motorola deal

  Nokia Siemens Networks' (NSN) proposed $1.2bn takeover of most of Motorola's wireless business will strengthen its position as a supplier of mobile and fixed wireless network infrastructure, but leaves the company still number two to Alcatel-Lucent ...

• July 19, 2010 19 Jul'10

  BT hitches onto Arqiva wagon for utility smart meter ride

  Signal distribution company Arqiva has attracted BT and security specialist Detica as partners to address communications for the UK's £10bn smart meter roll-out programme.

• July 19, 2010 19 Jul'10

  Apple share price unscathed by iPhone "debacle"

  Apple shares have held their price despite the alleged design fault in the iPhone 4 launched on 24 June.

• July 16, 2010 16 Jul'10

  Universal broadband to take three more years

  Providing universal access to broadband speeds of a minimum of 2Mbps will take until 2015, three years longer than Labour had predicted, the government said...

• July 16, 2010 16 Jul'10

  NTT to acquire Dimension Data in $3.2bn deal

  Japanese telecommunications operator NTT has announced an agreement to acquire UK-listed IT services company Dimension Data for $3.2bn.

• July 16, 2010 16 Jul'10

  Apple unlikely to recall iPhone 4, say analysts

  Apple's announcement of a news conference in New York today has sparked speculation as to how the company plans to deal with a design flaw that is causing reception problems with the iPhone 4.

• July 14, 2010 14 Jul'10

  Facebook claims 150 million mobile users

  Facebook claims to have about 150 million mobile users and expects mobile phones to be a crucial platform for the future.

• July 14, 2010 14 Jul'10

  Lords query £140k grant to rural broadband quango

  Questions have been raised in the House of Lords about £140,500 of taxpayers' money given to support a mentoring scheme for rural broadband projects, but more may be at stake.

• July 13, 2010 13 Jul'10

  BT wins more time to fight £42m overcharge case

  The Competition Appeal Tribunal has granted BT extra time to prepare its appeal against an Ofcom finding that it overcharged other network operators almost £42m for partial private circuits for five years

• July 12, 2010 12 Jul'10

  Ofcom orders mobile operators to move to same-day transfers from April 2011

  Mobile network operators will have to provide the porting authorisation code (PAC) that mobile phone users need to switch operators within two hours from 11 April 2011.

• July 09, 2010 09 Jul'10

  Kent County Council fills in rural broadband 'not-spots'

  Kent County Council has spent £486,000 to fund the roll-out of high-speed broadband to nearly a dozen villages and parishes

• July 09, 2010 09 Jul'10

  BT and CWU agree pay deal to avert strike ballot

  The Communications Workers Union (CWU) has agreed to a 3% pay rise which will be recommended for its members in a ballot in the next few weeks.

• July 09, 2010 09 Jul'10

  Google apologises to Australians for Wi-Fi snooping

  Google has apologised to Australians for harvesting private Wi-Fi data as the company collected images for its Street View service

• July 08, 2010 08 Jul'10

  UBS bank gets CSC voice and data services

  UBS bank has signed a five-year deal with Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) for networking services for $580m.

• July 07, 2010 07 Jul'10

  France Telecom to buy new national optical fibre network

  France Telecom/Orange is to spend €2bn on a new optical fibre network that will cover 40% of French homes by 2012, and every French dèpartement by 2015.

• July 07, 2010 07 Jul'10

  CNBC picks BT for video distribution

  Business and financial news channel CNBC has outsourced European distribution of its video content to BT's Media Network for five years.

• July 07, 2010 07 Jul'10

  Skype hires Yahoo's customer experience expert

  Virtual telecoms company Skype has hired Yahoo's vice-president for customer engineering Madhu Yarlagadda as its new chief development officer to look after Skype's engineering and development initiatives.

• July 07, 2010 07 Jul'10

  Arqiva presses for long-range radio for smart meter network

  The communications network to link the UK's smart meters should be assessed as part of the nation's critical national infrastructure, not simply another application on the existing fixed and mobile networks, says Arqiva smart meter project director ...

• July 07, 2010 07 Jul'10

  Assess smart meter network on total cost of ownership, says Arqiva

  The government should base its assessment of communications network alternatives for the proposed national £10bn smart meter/smart grid project on the total cost of ownership over the entire 25 year expected life of the project…

• July 06, 2010 06 Jul'10

  Union calls off BT strike ballot

  The Communication Workers Union has cancelled a strike ballot that was expected to favour the start of the first national strike in 23 years at BT.

• July 05, 2010 05 Jul'10

  Apple says tests confirm iPhone 4 has best wireless performance ever

  Apple has denied a design fault in the antennae of the iPhone 4 and has blamed instead the formula used to calculate signal strength.

• July 01, 2010 01 Jul'10

  NHS spent £1.6bn on IT in 2009

  The NHS spent £1.6bn on IT in 2009, the government has revealed.

• June 28, 2010 28 Jun'10

  Government eyes 'big society' rural broadband option

  The government could rely on its "big society" idea to get broadband into rural communities.

  The idea that communities club together and set up their...

• June 28, 2010 28 Jun'10

  Congressmen ask Steve Jobs to explain changes in Apple’s privacy policy

  US congress members have written to Apple chief executive Steve Jobs about concerns that the firm is collecting and sharing geo-location data of iPhone and...

• June 28, 2010 28 Jun'10

  Cisco signs network agreement with Abu Dhabi government

  US network equipment maker Cisco has signed a framework agreement with Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Centre (Adsic), the information and communications technology arm of the Abu Dhabi government.

• June 28, 2010 28 Jun'10

  US auctions spectrum to double broadband

  The US government has announced plans to nearly double the wireless communications spectrum in the next ten years to encourage the spread of wireless broadband,...

• June 25, 2010 25 Jun'10

  Smaller networks hit by fibre charges

  The Valuation Office Agency plans to publish new business tax rates on optical fibre networks in July, but few if any smaller network operators have been consulted.

• June 24, 2010 24 Jun'10

  HP collaborates with VMware to slash virtualisation costs

  HP is collaborating with VMware to provide integrated storage, desktop and connectivity to support virtualisation in the datacentre and pave the way towards...

• June 24, 2010 24 Jun'10

  Video: Droid X takes shine off iPhone 4

  While people are queuing up today to buy Apple's latest baby, Google, Motorola and Verizon have launched Droid x, their iPhone 4 killer, which offers a 4.3 inch 854 x 480 resolution screen and voice recognition.

• June 24, 2010 24 Jun'10

  NCP targets barriers to enterprise mobility

  Concern about the security of public internet access is still preventing many businesses giving mobile access to company data, says secure connection software...

• June 23, 2010 23 Jun'10

  Two London teenagers arrested in cybercrime investigation

  The Metropolitan Police's Police Central e-Crime Unit (PCeU) has arrested two teenagers in an international cybercrime investigation.

• June 22, 2010 22 Jun'10

  Schroders gives staff social media services to increase productivity

  The asset management and private banking company Schroders is turning to social media to help its staff communicate more effectively and to cut spiralling volumes of e-mail.

• June 22, 2010 22 Jun'10

  Sewer-based dark fibre operator up for entrepreneur of the year

  Elfed Thomas, CEO of metropolitan dark fibre network operator i3, will represent the North West in Ernst & Young’s search to find the UK entrepreneur of the year.

• June 21, 2010 21 Jun'10

  BT offers all-you-can-eat WiFi on your Home Hub

  BT is to scrap its cap on WiFi traffic following O2's announcement that it will limit data traffic on its mobile network. BT Retail consumer managing director John Petter said BT's broadband users were previously limited on WiFi minutes available at...

• June 21, 2010 21 Jun'10

  Government seeks no-cost ideas for universal 2Mbps broadband

  The government is to hold a open day on 15 July in London to hear ideas from industry about how to provide and pay for a minimum 2Mbps broadband service to the UK's "not spots", and how to roll a "superfast" service at the same time

• June 21, 2010 21 Jun'10

  Met police secures IT savings to 2015 with contract extension

  Greater London's Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has extended its contract with IT services supplier Capgemini until December 2015. The original £350m seven-year deal was signed in 2005, but the police service opted for an early renewal.

• June 21, 2010 21 Jun'10

  Telstra/NBN FAQ

  Richard Chirgwin analyses the proposed deal between the federal government and Telstra, explaining how it will work, what it will mean for your broadband connection and the impact on competition.

• June 18, 2010 18 Jun'10

  Banks rank cable TV firms less risky than telcos for broadband roll-out

  Banks see cable TV companies as better bets than telecommunications companies in the race to deliver national high-speed broadband, it emerged last night.

  Jeffrey...

• June 17, 2010 17 Jun'10

  Broadband contract termination charges slashed

  Despite voice and broadband suppliers BT, TalkTalk and Virgin Media believing their early contract termination charges were fair, they have nevertheless...

• June 17, 2010 17 Jun'10

  iPhone 4 demand exceeds expectations

  Apple has reported pre-orders of 600,000 for the latest version of the iPhone in the first day, wiping out initial iPhone 4 stocks and surpassing demand for the recently launched iPad.

• June 14, 2010 14 Jun'10

  World Cup 2010: Huge internet spike expected on 23 June

  UK internet traffic is expected to be almost 50% higher than normal on 23 June, when England plays its final group qualifying match in the 2010 World Cup.