Using the Award

Thursday 15th February,  2007

The winners of The 2007 ISPAs - the 9th Annual UK Internet Industry Awards in association with Epitiro - were announced at a gala dinner at the London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square on the 15th February 2007.

ISPA is grateful to the category sponsors, the drinks reception sponsor Kingston Communications, the table entertainment sponsor Outblaze, the attendees and the evening’s compere, Lee Hurst.

Congratulations to all the finalists, the companies that received commendations and of course the winners.

ISP Division

Best Dial-Up sponsored by Aladdin
The finalists were as follows:

Biscit
ntl:Telewest
Orange
Waitrose
Zen Internet

Winner: Zen Internet

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges were impressed with the robust and well-rounded dial-up package Zen offers. They were pleased to see solid investment in the latest technology to improve customer service. The dedicated Apple support was seen as an innovative addition to the service.”

Best Consumer Host sponsored by Community Internet
The finalists were as follows:

Keen Computers
Netcetera
Tesco
Tiscali
Virgin.net

Winner: Keen Computers

An ISPA spokesperson said, “As the demand for hosting grows, ISPs must be able to respond with the space consumers need and the flexibility to accommodate consumers’ hosting needs. The judges felt that Keen Computers was seriously addressing consumers’ hosting needs, offering a solid hosting package.”

Best Business Host sponsored by Swyx
The finalists were as follows:

Donhost
Keen Computers
Onyx Internet
Opal
UkFast

Winner: UKFast

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges agreed that UKFast can cater for the hosting requirements of any business. It was felt that UKfast can provide good security and tech support with a solid awareness of the applications necessary to run a successful business.”

Best Portal sponsored by Entanet
The finalists were as follows:

ntl:Telewest
Madasafish
SidNet
Tiscali
Virgin.net

Winner: Tiscali

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges felt Tiscali had managed to find an impressive balance between the services and original content it provides to its customers. They applauded Tiscali on its ability to incorporate its identity with that of the user.”

Best Consumer Email sponsored by Eversheds
The finalists were as follows:

Biscit
Madasafish
Namesco
Seriously Internet
Tiscali

Winner: Madasafish

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges felt that Madasafish’s email security and reliability reflects the vital role email now plays for consumers. The ease by which consumers are able to navigate Madasafish’s email interface using key commands was seen as a great feature.”

Best Business Email sponsored by Brightview
The finalists were as follows:

Biscit
Entanet
Exa Networks
Namesco
Zen Internet

Winner: Zen Internet

An ISPA spokesperson said, “Email plays a critical role in the day-to-day running of any business. Zen provides a complete range of email solutions for all types of businesses. The judges felt that Zen’s security, 24-7 support and administration tools were exactly what any business requires from their email package.”

Best Streaming sponsored by Orange
The finalists were as follows:

Astream
Groovy Gecko
Keen Computers
Mydeo
Streaming Wizard

Winner: Astream

An ISPA spokesperson said, “As broadband connections become more powerful and widespread, streaming looks set to become one of the primary methods for consumers to view content online. The judges were impressed with the variety of input formats Astream is able to offer its customers and its professional capabilities.” 

Best Internet Telephony sponsored by Magrathea
The finalists were as follows:

Entanet
Keen Computers
Lumison
Seriously Vocal
Tesco

Winner: Lumison

An ISPA spokesperson said, “VoIP represents a major revolution in telecommunications and the judges felt Lumison offered an excellent end-to-end managed VoIP service. They were particularly impressed with the range and integrated services offered by Lumison.” 

An ISPA spokesperson continued, “The judges deemed it appropriate for Tesco to be awarded a commendation for their work in promoting VoIP in a consumer market. Their ‘plug-and-play’ residential Internet telephony service is accessible and easy to understand for the average consumer.”

Best Wireless ISP sponsored by Sky Broadband
The finalists were as follows:

BOZII
Community Internet
The Cloud
West Somerset Internet

Winner: West Somerset Internet

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges considered it appropriate to recognise West Somerset Internet’s commitment to providing wireless broadband access to rural communities and closing the digital divide. The range of packages and the adaptability of contracts for companies such as charities, where the service is provided free of charge, also impressed the judges.”

Best Consumer Broadband sponsored by Axiom Systems
The finalists were as follows:

Be Unlimited
Eclipse Internet
Entanet
Namesco
Seriously Internet

Winner: Eclipse Internet

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges were impressed with Eclipse’s ‘zero-touch’ fully automated order processing service and rapid delivery of its broadband services. Of particular note were Eclipse’s efforts to provide uncapped broadband.”

An ISPA spokesperson continued, “A commendation is awarded to Be Unlimited for pushing the limits of broadband capabilities in a consumer market by being bold and offering ‘up to 24 meg broadband’.” 

Best Business Broadband sponsored by ZyXEL
The finalists were as follows:

Datanet
Eclipse Internet
Entanet
Kingston Communications
Namesco

Winner: Datanet 

An ISPA spokesperson said, “Regardless of the size of the business, broadband is an invaluable tool. The judges felt that Datanet’s range of packages and its ability to offer a bespoke package could cater for any business. They were particularly impressed by Datanet’s SDSL offering.” 

Best Consumer ISP sponsored by Alcatel-Lucent
The finalists were as follows:

ntl:Telewest
Orange
Tiscali
Virgin.net

Winner: ntl:Telewest

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges were impressed with ntl:Telewest’s good technical delivery and its investment in customer services over the past year. The judges also felt that ntl:Telewest’s packages give consumers a good choice of services available in the broadband market.”

Best Business ISP sponsored by Cisco Systems
The finalists were as follows:

Claranet
Datanet
Entanet
UKFast
Zen Internet

Winner: Claranet

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges agreed that Claranet’s services offer outstanding quality, reliability and adaptability for businesses. They were particularly impressed with Claranet’s customer support and their dedicated managed security services.” 

An ISPA spokesperson continued, “Zen Internet was commended for their dedicated support service provided to Apple Mac users.”

Special Division

The Internet Watch Foundation Award sponsored by Imtech Telecom
The finalists were as follows:

Annie Mullins , Global Head of Content Standards, Vodafone
BT
The Home Secretary’s Task Force for Child Protection on the Internet
John Carr, Internet Consultant, NCH
Nicholas Lansman, Secretary General, ISPA UK

Winner: The Home Secretary’s Task Force on Child Protection on the Internet

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The Internet Watch Foundation particularly recognised the Task Force for continuing to provide a hugely successful multi-agency forum enabling a vast array of experts to contribute towards policies and good practice documents to make the Internet a safer place for children.”


The Corporate Social Responsibility Award
Winner: Orange

An ISPA spokesperson said, “The judges felt that Orange has an excellent corporate social responsibility policy in place. They recognised Orange’s support for the Internet industry through its work with the National High Tech Crime Unit and the Home Office.”

An ISPA spokesperson continued “The judges also acknowledged Datanet’s support of a local hospice, ntl:Telewest’s dedicated corporate social responsibility monitoring team and Claranet’s broad charity work.”

Internet Villain sponsored by Abbostbury Software
The finalists were as follows:

Commissioner Vivianne Reding and European Commission 
e360 insight
Peter Black, Executive Chairman Next Generation Networks UK 
The British Phonographic Industry
The US Government

Winner: Commissioner Vivianne Reding and European Commission

An ISPA spokesperson said Commissioner Vivianne Reding and the EC received the award, "For foisting the most arcane set of rules yet seen for prior registration of .eu domains, requiring UK registered companies to submit legal affidavits to justify the authenticity of their business."

Internet Hero sponsored by UKFast
The finalists were as follows:

Annie Mullins, Vodafone
Ofcom
Simon Watkin and the Home Office team 
Stephen Carter, Former Ofcom Chief Executive
The EU

Winner: Annie Mullins, Vodafone

An ISPA spokesperson said Annie Mullins received the award "For her work with the Home Office Task Force on Protection of Children on the Internet and the European Union's Safer Internet Programme." 

- ends -

Notes to Editors

The categories for The 2007 ISPAs are as follows:-

ISP Division

• Best Consumer ISP sponsored by Alcatel-Lucent 

• Best Business ISP sponsored by Cisco Systems 

• Best Consumer Broadband sponsored by Axiom Systems 

• Best Business Broadband sponsored by ZyXEL

• Best Consumer Email sponsored Eversheds

• Best Business Email sponsored by Brightview 

• Best Dial-Up sponsored Aladdin

• Best Consumer Host sponsored by Community Internet 

• Best Business Host sponsored by Swyx 

• Best Internet Telephony sponsored by Magrathea 

• Best Portal sponsored by Entanet 

• Best Wireless ISP sponsored by Sky Broadband 

• Best Streaming sponsored by Orange 
  

Special Awards

The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) Award sponsored by Imtech Telecom 
The Corporate Social Responsibility Award 
Internet Villain sponsored by Abbotsbury Software 
Internet Hero sponsored by UKFast 

The views expressed in this release are those of the Internet Services Providers' Association (ISPA UK) and do not necessarily reflect the corporate policies of the individual companies that are members of the Association. 

For further information, please contact the ISPA Press Office Tel: 020 7609 1907 

About the Internet Services Providers’ Association: 

The Internet Services Providers’ Association (ISPA) was established in 1995 as a trade association to represent providers of Internet services in the UK. ISPA promotes competition, self-regulation and the development of the Internet industry. For a list of members or other information about ISPA, please consult the website: http://www.ispa.org.uk 


About Epitiro:

Epitiro's is the UK's leading provider of Customer Experience Monitoring products and services that cover the end-to-end processes of service delivery, service assurance and network performance, providing a benchmark in delivery and customer expectation. Epitiro's products collect analyze and compare the Key Performance Indicators across a range of IP services in real time. They provide location-based reporting and comparison ensuring the identification and analysis of the root causes of unacceptable network performance. http://www.epitiro.com

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