LineOne faces expulsion from trade group

LineOne will find out within a week whether it is being thrown out of the UK's Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA) as a punishment for scrapping its unmetered service.

In July LineOne announced that it would scrap its unmetered service with telco Quip on 30 September. The decision sparked a barrage of complaints from customers angry at the ISP's behaviour. ISPA criticised LineOne for behaving in breach of its code of conduct and began an investigation.

However, almost two months later no decision has been made. ISPA confirmed today that its council has yet to decide what action to take against LineOne but said a decision will be made shortly.

"There is no decision to report as yet but there should be an announcement within a week's time," said a spokesman for the body.

ISPA, established in 1995, has created a regime of self-regulation among ISPs to avoid what it sees as a hindrance of unnecessary legislation. It has developed a code of practice for ISPs, which addresses service quality.

According to ISPA's guidelines, if LineOne is found to be in breach of the rules it could be ejected from the industry group. This would have little impact on LineOne, since ISPs are not required to be a member of ISPA to operate in the UK.

A spokesman for LineOne said the company had expected ISPA to make its decision last Friday, and confirmed today that it is still awaiting a decision.