Against the backdrop of a maturing broadband market and a challenging economic environment, Western European broadband is in relatively good health, according to a report published by analyst firm Strategy Analytics. Sixty-one per cent of Western European households had broadband connectivity in their homes at the end of 2008; this number will grow to exceed […]

France’s highest legal authority struck down a key provision of the controversial law that would have cut off Internet access to people who repeatedly download copyrighted content illegally. The council rejected the core portion of the measure, under which a newly created agency, acting on the recommendations of copyright owners, would have been able to […]

BT has told video streaming sites that they will have to contribute to the cost of upgrading its broadband networks if they want consumers to enjoy a good level of video quality in future. BT Retail MD John Petter told the FT: "We can't give the content providers a completely free ride and continue to […]

Research by Epitiro, the broadband communications authority, reveals that speeds delivered to UK mobile broadband users are significantly less than those advertised. The research covered popular broadband activities such as web surfing, downloading music and movies, VoIP telephone calling, Internet gaming and watching streaming video. Leading mobile broadband operators 3, O2, Orange, T-Mobile, Virgin Media […]

The cost to the UK economy of unauthorised downloads of digital content including software equates, as a conservative estimate, to £12 billion (E14bn) a year, according to a study into the economic impact of illegal file-sharing. commissioned by The Strategic Advisory Board for Intellectual Property (SABIP). Unusually the report spelled out its calculations and extrapolations. […]

The lobbying effort is backed by more than 15 organisations from the creative industries and, for the first time, Amicus/Unite and the Trade Union Congress. The coalition urges the government to ensure a tough stance is taken in the final Digital Britain report, due to be published by the communications minister, Lord Carter. “Job losses […]

More than 70 per cent of UK homes without Internet access have no interest in getting broadband or feel it would be too expensive to do so, according to research published from Ofcom. With Internet takeup in the UK running at about 70 per cent, and only another 5 per cent promising to get connected […]

The Board of Directors of CableLabs has named Paul Liao, the chief technology officer at Panasonic, the next CEO of Cable Television Laboratories Inc. Liao will take over from long-time head Dick Green.

The BBC Trust has delayed its decision on the go-ahead of the BBC lead Project Canvas as it calls on more detail from BBC executives and their partners BT and ITV. The Trust, which had decided there was no need for a commercial impact assessment, was due to make a decision in July, however all […]

An important stake in one of Taiwan's leading cable operators has been put up for sale by some of the company's foreign owners. Taiwan Broadband Communications is owned by a consortium made up of two investment funds linked to Australia's Macquarie Group and Intermediate Capital Group, a London-based provider of debt finance. According to reports, […]