AltaVista admits it has no unmetered access service

NEWS AltaVista UK has confirmed it failed to launch its unmetered access service slated for June. The company announced the service in March, saying it would be available for a small annual or monthly fee. This evening, however, the company blamed BT for making the scheme unviable. In a prepared statement, AltaVista UK Managing Director, Andy Mitchell said: "AltaVista access is the symptom, not the cause. We are reliant on the provision of flat rate circuits from BT, direct to the end user, to be able to offer a service that is sustainable, quality-focused, and economically viable. To date BT has failed to make this possible and its continuing delays make it difficult to plan a solution." Mitchell went on to say that BT may not make cheap third party access across the local loop available until January next year and noted that in the meantime BT will have launched its own unmetered access service. AltaVista UK will now focus on its search services. All customers who signed up to AltaVista's interim service will continue to be served by its ISP partner, ClaraNet.