ISPs offer extra services

I'm sure it hasn't escaped anyone's attention that many of the UK's largest internet service providers (ISPs) are locked in a battle for customer numbers and revenue. We are assaulted daily by all manner of media promoting the benefits of signing up for broadband access from supplier x or provider y.

Currently, the major differentiator is price, with little disclaimers flashing across the bottom of the TV screen, or hidden in small print in newspapers, concerning access speeds - some of which barely conform to expectations for broadband - and session limitations.

In more mature markets, ISPs are looking at other ways to attract customers, and price is no longer the main selling point. Here, attention has turned to the provision of additional services such as spam filtering, parental control, antivirus tools, pop-up blockers, et al.

It is clear that many users are unsure how to implement systems, and are turning to their service providers to supply them with all the controls they know they need.

ISPs can provide such controls free or at a reduced cost to attract customers away from competitors, or they can simply charge extra for them to increase revenue. This extra source of revenue is becoming more important for ISPs as the market becomes saturated.

Customers can ask an ISP to switch a specific service on or off and - if the ISP has the right infrastructure - this can be implemented immediately.

ISPs offering such services saw increased uptake of their antivirus systems during the recent MSBlaster worm outbreak. They attracted consumers and companies wanting protection. The ISPs rubbed their hands in glee and muttered about ill winds, and proved that by adding services they could increase their business in a congested market.

Other service elements that can differentiate one ISP from another include speed of response - the ability to switch users on and off from a service instantly. And there is growing demand for ISPs to offer more management capabilities to reduce the administration that customers must otherwise carry out themselves. If customers want their ISP to handle management tasks they are unlikely to be keen on ISPs offering extra software on CDs as an add-on to set-up disks.

One company that provides infrastructure for ISP services is Zero-Knowledge Systems, which supplies a large proportion of the Canadian and North American market. It is now turning its attention to the UK and points east. By providing ISPs with the infrastructure layer to support additional services - alongside partnerships for the services - Zero-Knowledge Systems is bringing a strong differentiator into the ISP market.

It's a fact of life that the problems of the internet will not go away.

Spam is still prevalent, pop-ups are ever-more intrusive, inappropriate content is delivered in more subtle ways; the list is almost endless.

Asking users - most of whom lack technical expertise - to tackle these difficulties is clearly a non-starter. But offering services to manage these issues for consumers and corporates could be a big and profitable business.