Bulldog stops direct sales of consumer and SMB broadband

Bulldog has announced that it is pulling out of the consumer and small business retail broadband markets. It will continue to support existing subscribers with both customer care and the launch of new services but will cease any further proactive sales, marketing or advertising activities to acquire new customers. The ISP will instead focus on offering its extensive LLU network as a wholesale product for other service providers. ...more

Reports of Vonage death 'greatly exaggerated' says CEO

Vonage's current patent spat with Verizon will not be the death of the company, its chief executive has sought to reassure worried customers. The IP telephony provider has more than 2.2 million active accounts and is concerned that what it terms as a 'disproportionately-negative' reaction from the market following recent courtroom activity may harm user confidence. ...more

McDonalds makes a meal of Nintendo Net access

Nintendo and McDonald's have struck a deal to offer gamers free Internet access in restaurants across the US. The service means that owners of the Nintendo DS console will be able to grab a burger while they play selected games against people around the world - without paying a fee, reports the BBC. McDonald's already offers wireless Internet access for laptops in 6,000 of its US restaurants at a charge, but Nintendo are the first to provide a complimentary connection for its customers at the fast-food chain. ...more

Dutch join anti-iTunes campaign

The Netherlands' consumer protection agency has joined its French and German counterparts in backing the Norway-led coalition of countries that are trying to force Apple to remove DRM restrictions from the iTunes Store. The Dutch Consumentenbond has filed a complaint with the country's antitrust authority alleging that Apple's practice of supporting only its own iPod portable players is illegal. 'What we want from Apple is that they remove the limitations that prevent you from playing a song you download from iTunes on any player other than an iPod,' spokesman van Kouwen said. ...more

e-beeb squeezed

Forty jobs to go as beeb.com, the BBC's e-commerce portal, undergoes 'restructuring'. The closure is another reflection of dot-com woes - of the struggle to generate revenues from online services and advertising. ...more