British Telecom: Head in Sand

In the UK the main (formerly only) phone company British Telecom (BT) just doesn't get it.

According to BT's Graham Whitehead "The internet is dead, or dying; it's full of viruses, worms and porn, you have to wear a kevlar suit before you go online," he said. "BT is creating a private network, which will be joined to other private networks, to which we will add voice over IP."

He also thinks the low uptake of broadband in the UK is due to people not seeing a need for broadband in their daily lives.

I disagree: the low uptake of broadband in the UK is directly related to a certain company (BT) trying to control and overcharge for broadband connectivity, limiting competition and stifling innovation.

I am so glad I moved from the UK to the US and got away from that kind of attitude and inward thinking. The US is a lot bigger and therefore a lot more difficult to wire for broadband connectivity but over half of US internet users have broadband and personally I would never live in a house of apartment without it.