John Lewell

The UK’s second largest cable company, Telewest Communications, has agreed to purchase from NTL the remaining 50 per cent of Cable London for £428 million ($680 million). Earlier this month, Microsoft and Telewest announced a strategic alliance to deliver broadband and Internet services in the UK — an alliance which is clearly being strengthened by […]

A new event for the audio and video Internet industry is coming to Europe. Called Streaming Media Europe ’99, it will be held at The RAI Centre, Amsterdam on October 18, 19 and 20. The European event is a version of a similar event staged successfully in the United States by the same organiser, First […]

The London Stock Exchange has neither confirmed nor denied reports that it intends to launch a new market for technology stocks, modelled on the Nasdaq. However, the need for such a market has been clear for some time, and reports from the BBC and leading newspapers suggest that serious plans are in the pipeline. Among […]

Netscape Online made a noisy debut in the UK on Tuesday, following weeks of anticipation for the free Internet service. Netscape Online aims at a sector of the market that parent company AOL Europe says is a “value-conscious segment” of “do-it-yourself” Internet users. Instead of offering a family service, like AOL itself, Netscape Online is […]

Buena Vista Internet Group (BVIG) has acquired a controlling interest of 60 per cent in Soccernet from the Daily Mail and General Trust. Soccernet will now become the cornerstone for ESPN.com to expand its international operations. “With Soccernet, we are now well positioned to grow our audience base outside the United States, introducing sports fans […]

Communications company KPNQwest announced Monday that it has completed a 1.2 kilometre crossing under the River Thames, an important link in its pan-European fibre optic network. Calling it “the longest hole of its kind under the River Thames,” KPNQwest drew attention to some of the crossing’s exceptional features. Built by a radar-guided drilling machine between […]

E-business solution company Netlife, of Hamburg, Germany, says that UK banks are at risk from new entrants to the financial services market. The UK lags behind Germany, where 91 per cent of all banking sites offer online transactions. Netlife made an extensive study, comparing the Web sites of UK banks with those of foreign banks, […]

In a letter to Members of Parliament, Paddy Tipping MP, Parliamentary Secretary at the Privy Council Office, acknowledged that the UK Government had made good progress in beating the Millennium Bug internally. However, in his letter — which is also available from the Year 2000 Web site, Tipping warned against any complacency. “I am pleased […]

The UK’s Channel Four announced that the popular archaeological TV show “Time Team Live” will have an interactive weekend, September 3-5. Viewers will be able to influence the making of the programme itself, say the broadcasters. Headed by presenter Tony Robinson, six programmes from York will attempt to unravel 2,000 years of British history over […]

A new UK Web site for arranging mortgages, www.mortgage-brokers.co.uk, is offering around 3,000 constantly updated mortgage options from 30 top lenders. The site, run by Independent Mortgage Brokers, also offers a start-to-finish mortgage brokerage and completion service — the only such service on the Internet in the UK. “Taking out a mortgage is probably the […]

Web currency site beenz.com claims that a million transactions have been conducted on the Internet using beenz, and that there are now over 100,000,000 beenz in circulation. “The millionth beenz transaction underlines how much the Web’s currency has begun to capture the hearts and minds of both companies and consumers on both sides of the […]

Web developer Webzter Corp. has opened an office in London, and plans for the new branch to serve all of Europe in the next few months. Other offices were also opened in Rio de Janeiro and in New York City and San Jose, Calif. The announcement of this major expansion comes just days after Webzter […]