BT 2000 Annual Report Download - page 14

Annual report and Form 20-F 13
services, enabling users to download information, images,
video or graphics almost instantly. An existing telephone
line is transformed by installing electronic equipment in
the local exchange and on the customer's premises, which
means that the network can normally be upgraded
without having to dig up the street. ADSL capability is
currently available from over 400 UK exchanges and, by
mid-2000, ADSL is expected to be extended to a further
100 exchanges.
Almost 5,000 customers are part of the ADSL trial,
which should lead to launch in June 2000. We have signed
agreements with more than 40 service providers who will
provide interactive services over the ADSL lines.
BTopenworld ± our mass-market internet business
BTopenworld will bring together, in a single mass-market
business, all of our existing UK internet service providers
(ISPs) and portals and Open, our digital interactive
television joint venture with British Sky Broadcasting
Group (BSkyB). It will also include BT's international
wholly-owned ISPs, as well as BT's interests in the ISPs
of its ventures across the world.
Internet services earn us revenue directly, through
e-commerce, advertising and subscriptions, and indirectly,
through increased network usage. It is expected that
advertising and transaction charging for e-commerce will
form an increasing proportion of our internet revenue.
We believe that BTopenworld will start operations as
one of the largest mass-market internet companies in
Europe, with around 2.5 million customers; about
1.7 million of these customers are served by companies
which will be wholly owned by BTopenworld and the other
0.8 million represent our proportionate share of our
ventures' customers ^ equity customers. About 1.3 million
of BTopenworld's customers will be in the UK and
0.9 million in continental Europe.
The business will assume responsibility for BT's
wholly-owned ISPs in the UK, BT Internet (a business
providing unlimited o¡-peak internet access for a £at fee)
and BT Click (a no-subscription ISP providing internet
access for the cost of a local phone call).
The business will also manage BT's other internet
ventures in the UK:
&our 50/50 joint venture with LookSmart, a leading
US-based on-line navigation company, which creates
and distributes internet portal services throughout
Europe and Asia;
&ExciteUK, our 50/50 joint venture with Excite,
through which we provide our btclick.com service;
&LineOne, an ISP run as a 50/50 joint venture with
United News & Media; and
&our virtual ISP services, which provide internet access
service on a wholesale basis for companies such as
Tesco and WH Smith.
Internationally, BTopenworld will take direct management
control over BT's existing wholly-owned internet
businesses including:
&In¢nito, an internet access service for the Italian
market which acquired more than 300,000 active
customers in the ¢rst three months following
its launch;
&Arrakis, an ISP operating in Spain, with more than
130,000 active customers; and
&Oceanfree.net, Ireland's ¢rst free-access consumer
internet service, with about 70,000 active customers.
(Active customers are those who use the service within a
given number of days ^ usually 30).
Our joint ventures' internet o¡erings include:
&Planet-Interkom in Germany, which has more
than 100,000 customers and in which BT has a
45% stake;
&sunrise communications in Switzerland, in which BT
has a 34% stake and which operates Freesurf,
Switzerland's third largest ISP, and carries tra¤c for
18 of Switzerland's top 22 ISPs;
&Telenordia, in Sweden, of which BT owns a third, and
which has more than 300,000 residential and business
customers for its range of internet services;
&iSm@rt in Hong Kong, the ISP of SmarTone, in
which BT has a 20% stake and which has over
200,000 customers;
&MaxisNet in Malaysia, launched in October 1999, in
which BT has a 33% stake, and which has some
112,000 customers;
&Japan Telecom's internet service with around 900,000
customers; and
&StarHub Internet in Singapore, in which we have a
19% stake, and which has approximately
169,000 customers.
In Italy, I.NET also provides managed internet connectivity
and applications hosting.
BTopenworld will be responsible for Genie, which has
pioneered mobile internet services in Europe. Genie was the
¢rst mobile ISP to be introduced in Europe, the ¢rst to
introduce a commercial wireless application protocol
(WAP) service and the ¢rst to launch WAP e-mail. It
currently has more than 600,000 customers, of which over
450,000 used the service during March 2000. Genie services