AAISP looking to ditch BT

[David]

No Im just shopping around as long as its a short contract ....I am not sure that AAisp can resolve the issue so undeer the T&Cs I will go somewhere else where slow speeds are reflected in the cost not sure that anyone can get past this though all I do know is Im still on dial up speeds for almost top money which is daft economics.

Zen has always been on my shortlist 

[Rik]

Newnet might be a better bet, David.

[David]

Will check them out ....not sure they operate here but worth a look on sam





Checked and they do cover this address and make the usual claims and slightly cheaper but can they deliver even the 4 mbps they say  

[Rik]

http://www.newnet.co.uk/broadband/

[Tacitus]

Interesting you're thinking of moving from AAISP - presumably because they haven't solved your line problems.  

I'm currently dealing with Demon's script jockeys in Bangalore and not really getting very far with an intermittent line problem and Newnet is on my shortlist.  One thing to watch out for is that they charge for total bandwidth, up and down.

Whilst doing some research I had a look at those ISPs that were founded in the mid to late 90s.  It's interesting to see where they are now.  Zen looks to be by far the biggest, iDNet is probably the smallest with Newnet somewhere in the middle. Interestingly Newnet is the only plc compared to iDNet and Zen which are both private limited companies.  They did strike me as a company with a solid background, well managed by experienced business people and, AFAICT, likely to be around for some time.  

[Rik]

Nice summation, Tac. 

[David]

Thanks Tac I am such a light user I have actually just had credit to my account as I download very little ineed so I would have thought any restrictions would not really affect a use such as myself.
No gaming some modest youtube but other than this I usually just surf the net Email and thats about it really.


I hope they sort yours out 

[Tacitus]

Nice summation, Tac.  

Thanks Rik  

It does pose some thoughts as to which of them will survive.  Were I an investor I would be wary of Zen.  Although Richard Tang seems to have weathered the 'teenage' years and obviously must delegate a lot of the work, they still seem overly dependent on him, both as a figurehead and a driving force.  I would be looking for some strength in depth on the management team since if he fell off his perch the company might flounder.  Some 350 employees - their figure - need a lot of business to keep them occupied and that level of growth brings its own problems.  Throw in the palatial headquarters and, they're going to need a very hard nosed attitude to keep them going, particularly in the current climate.  

Some recent events suggest this is what's happening.  Moving people to WBC without the option to go back and, without any incentive, suggests business is taking precedence over the cuddly image. Add some of the moans on TB about quality of service - not in itself unusual - and it may be their image is getting a bit tarnished due to the need to have a harder attitude.  

Newnet looks to be run by experienced business people from the get go.  It might not be as big as Zen, but has a diverse portfolio of broadband, colo, leased lines etc.  Not as good in value terms as Zen, but the management appears clued up and I get the impression they have solid relevant experience before coming to Newnet.  The fact they are a plc should push them to be better managed.  They've also got investors in people awards, ISO 9600 accreditation (over rated in my view) but I would say that purely as a business it's probably the most solid of the three.  

Speaking as an outsider, iDNet look a friendly company with good customer support, but they also are in the difficult 'teenage years' - the time when the business takes on a life of its own and the founder/s 'lets go' and start to guide rather than micro manage.  I may be wrong but I have the impression everything depends on Simon, which is not a good thing for obvious reasons.  To me this suggests the business may be having a difficult adolescence and, for this reason I would say that purely in business management terms, iDNet might possibly be the weakest of the three.  

Zen might appear to be in the same situation but given the relative size of the companies, whereas Richard Tang must be forced to delegate, Simon isn't, since their total strength going by the website, is hardly in double figures.  OTOH I could be doing him an injustice.....

So as businesses - nothing to do with quality of service etc, I would put them in the order Newnet, Zen and iDNet.  But of course this could all be the product of a fevered imagination and half a bottle of red  

[David]

That saves me a lot of reading Tac 


If of course you are correct 

[Tacitus]

That saves me a lot of reading Tac 
If of course you are correct 

Like I said I was looking at them purely in business management terms nothing to do with quality of service. 

Also half a bottle of red does encourage the imagination 

[axisofevil]

I'm surprised more companies don't use South Africa, where the standard of English is pretty good.  I know TalkTalk use a call centre in Durban.  An Afrikaans accent is generally more comprehensible than Bangalore.

Plusnet uses a part Sheffield, part Durban set-up.
At the moment, it's not fully integrated so I can ring a number guaranteed to get me Yorkshire.
They haven't a clue (on the whole) in SA.

[David]

   

[Tacitus]

They haven't a clue (on the whole) in SA.

My experience of the SA call centre was the exact opposite    I'm guessing it's like Bangalore - purely luck of the draw as to whether you get someone who knows what they are doing.

[Simon]

No Im just shopping around as long as its a short contract ....I am not sure that AAisp can resolve the issue so undeer the T&Cs I will go somewhere else where slow speeds are reflected in the cost not sure that anyone can get past this though all I do know is Im still on dial up speeds for almost top money which is daft economics.

Zen has always been on my shortlist 

Bearing in mind the work supposedly being done by BT over the weekend, would it not be prudent to hold out for another few days, David, to see what transpires?

[dujas]

Why not go with one of the cheap mass market ISPs and let them take ownership of the phone line too? May have more pull with Openreach.

[David]

I have given them until next Friday..it wont make that much difference 

[Rik]

Do you have Be as an option on your exchange, David?

[David]

Yes checked it yesterday and they can provide the service which is something....thats what I thought the last time though

[Rik]

It might be worth a try, David, though do wait to see if BT's work this weekend produces a resolution.

[David]

  Yes Rik I will ....wont hold my breath though 

[Noreen]

I saw this today, at least we're told what's happening. http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/plusnet/f/3686341-adsl2-faults.html

[Rik]

WBC is clearly not ready for the market, and all ISPs are struggling with it. It's wrong that BT can get away with this. 

[Gary]

This is very interesting stuff. Unfortunately, as some have mentioned, it's not a global solution given that LLU operators like Be will just become over-subscribed.

Thats a good point and has been I think been one that Be is aware than O2 can add as many as they like, but saying that my service with O2 was very good untill access package at our new property, even cable services can suffer contention issues at nodes so there is no silver bullet I think.

[Rik]

Which is unfortunate if there's a vampire in your room.

[Gary]

Which is unfortunate if there's a vampire in your room.

Shhhhhh I know its sleeping as its daytime, but like BT you never know if the information is correct about how things really work with either one