LineOne put in the ISP shop window

NEWS Both companies say the service no longer fits into their strategic plans and are hoping to get about £180m from the sale. United has recently sold off its television and newspaper interests to focus on business magazines and a limited number of internet sites. BT has consolidated its ISP business into BTOpenworld. A buyout by BT was not an option because of the company's current borrowing position. Launched in 1997 it is among the top five ISPs with almost 1.5 million registered users and ranks as the twentieth most visited site, according to figures released for October by MMXI. By Geoffrey Davies