Virgin Net delays unmetered rollout

Virgin Net, worried about spoiling its reputation, has delayed the national rollout of its unmetered internet service while it irons out problems encountered during its trial service.

Stop-The-Clock, which provides internet access for a monthly flat-rate fee, was launched in April for 10,000 existing Virgin Net subscribers. A national rollout was scheduled for July, but has now been pushed back to September.

A Virgin Net spokesman said the service has been delayed because of a "cross section" of issues which need to be refined. "The trial has thrown up a number of areas to be looked at, which was precisely the purpose of the trial. We don't think we are ready to offer a full service yet," he said.

Areas that will need 'refining' include technical and customer support issues, said the spokesman, adding that the trial itself has not suffered any real difficulties.

"The trial has been a success and we have been able to monitor the usage patterns of customers. But other brands have failed miserably and Virgin can't afford to do that. There is no point launching a service if you can't deliver all aspects."

Alex Heath, Virgin Net managing director, said in April that the service would offer free internet access all day, every day for a flat monthly fee of £15, but restricted the offering to 10,000 existing subscribers. It is not clear whether Virgin will limit how many new users can sign up to Stop-The-Clock in September.

Other ISPs whose unmetered internet access services have run into difficulty in recent months include LibertySurf, 4unet, NTL and LineOne.