This is a little rant I'm afraid. I know it's basically my fault BUT!!!!!

Sometimes when at clients premises, I have to use a series of rescue/installation discs to resolve an issue.

Sometimes, it can take quite a few hours to sort out the multiple problems people allow to accumulate on their computer before seeking professional help. A lot of which is helped along by the 'bar room fixers' who know absolutely sod all in real terms about much at all.

They don't know what the real problem is because they've not seen it and clients rarely know how to describe the problem fully anyway - not that there's anything wrong with that, I don't expect it.

The client then goes and mis-follows the wrong advice they've been given and make an even bigger dogs breakfast of the whole thing and after they've totally screwed their computer, they call me.

Now to the point of my rant.

After I've spent hours sorting out the cock-up, I put my things back in my bag (or so I think) and head off home. Some days, or even weeks, later I open my bag looking for the discs to find that I've accidentally left at my clients.

The annoying thing is the client, who now has a full set of service and recovery discs that I've paid for, and doesn't have a clue in hell how to use them, hasn't had the decency to ring me and let me know I've left them. This has happened every time I've done it.

I now have to go through the time and expense of getting a new set of dics together.

ONE THING YOU GET FROM ME IS HONESTY, IF YOU CAN'T RETURN THE FAVOUR THEN YOU DON'T DESERVE THE SERVICES I OFFER.

​I will work out where I left them and that person will have a heavy bill next time they call me!

It just goes to show, there's a lot of really dishonest immigrants out there.

I'm getting more and more calls from people asking me to supply them with 20M internet.

Why?

Because they've bought one of these stupid IPTV boxes and it doesn't work on their current internet providers 6M connection.

More and more people are falling for the IPTV box scam. I've been asked by one of the 'budget' phone suppliers to sell their products including ................. IPTV boxes.

Guess what I told them to do with the boxes. Yep, stick 'em where the sun don't shine. They don't believe me when I tell them they'll never work until they sort out the internet and the contention ratios (how many people who share an internet connection at the exchange) but my concerns are proving to be fact.

Current contention ratios are such that you share your 6M with 49 other people for domestic clients and 24 others on a business connection (that's why business internet costs a lot more).

When there's only a few of you streaming mountains of data through your IPTV boxes, it'll just about cope but as those numbers increase, the system will either collapse or your internet provider will put the brakes on your streaming, which in turn means your IPTV boxes won't work.

Because the ex-pat fraternity are so obsessed with watching TV, hundreds of scammers have sprung up selling IPTV boxes for obscene amounts because they know you're going to pay it.

It costs them money to pay for servers to keep your boxes running and it takes a bit of technical know-how to set them up. These people have neither. They pay the deposit for the server, sell loads of boxes (making nearly €100 a box) then disappear and move on to the next town.

One hour watching live TV through the internet consumes around 700Mb of data - enough to supply an 'average' household for at least a week.

Data has to be paid for by somebody. Your internet provider sets their systems and prices based on the 'average' household. As more and more of you become 'abnormal' users, only two things can happen. Their network collapses and/or the price goes up.

What I see to be one of the biggest issues here in Spain is the ex-pat communities EXPECT to get the services they would get in their home countries at the same level of pricing. Wake up, it aint ever going to happen. The majority of Spanish networks were never designed to be used as they are now and upgrading them costs many many millions.

This is Spain, stop expecting something for nothing, accept that legitimate traders have small fortunes to pay in taxes and other fees and have all sorts of hoops to jump through to stay legal. I'm not suggesting that paying €600 for €200 worth of satellite TV kit is acceptable, what I am saying is that, as with all things in life, you need to carry out due diligence checks.

Use your legal, registered traders as you have recourse if they sell you a pup. All these illegal IPTV scammers don't give a fig once they've got your money. You can't get a refund and you'll never find them once they've moved on as they use false details.


All opinions in this article are those of the author.

I've just returned from a meeting with some of my peers and I find I'm taking issue with some of their working practices.

What made my blood boil was how one of the attendees thought it acceptable to make huge amounts of profit from selling illegal card sharing IPTV boxes to expats. He also thought it acceptable to remove cards from noticeboards posted by his competition.

Nothing wrong with that you might think. I do!

Why?

It is not only disrespectful it shows contempt. If his product is good, it will sell on its' own merits regardless of the competition.

It's disrespectful. Somebody else has had to spend their money having cards printed and spent their time and effort in posting the cards in the first place If he can't stand competition he shouldn't be in business.

Making in the region of €100 per box is ripping people off. It shows the contempt he has for you, his clients. It also shows the contempt he has for the law. Stealing premium paid for content and charging you to view it is highly illegal as he does not have the rights to rebroadcast the programs.

Watching Freeview satellite TV, on the other hand, is not illegal.

Satellite Internet providers are being falsely accused of being overpriced and a rip off when in actual fact, you're really being ripped off by the IPTV/card share merchants.

It also shows how TV is valued above all else. You're quite happy to pay €700 to install a €150 dish and a €50 card share box that is illegal but unwilling to pay €169 to install satellite internet equipment that is legal.

What does that say about peoples morals. I'm not being judgmental, I'm just exposing the sad truth that is out there. The worst thing about it is you seem to enjoy being ripped of just so you can watch TV.

If you all told these profiteerers to stick their grossly overpriced products where the sun don't shine, you'd soon see the prices come down. But you won't, you'll just go on paying whatever they ask and they know it.

All brands and registered trade marks acknowledged.

 You could be forgiven believing that the UK has broadband in abundance from all the hype generated by the broadband companies but the picture isn’t quite as rosy as it’s painted – nothing new there then.

Who’s seen BT and Virgin Media advertising squillions of megabytes internet for ONLY peanuts. Well, it seems they’re making monkeys out of the UK public because absolutely nobody is living up to the hype.

I read quite some time ago the Virgin Media were able to provide 1Gigabit internet over their cable network. Where is it now? Just in their office? Anybodies guess.

Mind you, according to OFFCOM, they provide the fastest average broadband download speeds. They also advertise on their website speeds of UP TO 100Mbps but according to uSwitch, there is nowhere in the UK that actually gets this. Strange.  Oh sorry, yes they do; remember the magic two words – UP TO.

In fact, according to uSwitch, there is nowhere in the UK that gets superfast broadband speeds at all. Superfast broadband is classed as having an average download speed of 24Mbps or better. This seems to be in contradiction to claims made by BT in 2009 that they will give superfast broadband to at least 6 UK cities by 2010 and that 40% of the country would have access to superfast broadband by 2012. What went wrong BT? Could it be they got involved with Telefonica? Pass.

Add to this that at least 27% of the UK struggles to achieve 3Mbps. 35% of residents in Norwich are yet to see speeds of 3Mbps. So what is going on in the UK?

In London, 20% of people get speeds lower than 3Mbps.

In a survey 2 years ago, Halesworth in Suffolk was home to the slowest broadband connection at 0.128Kbps. Broadband?!

OK people, it’s time to wake up and smell the coffee. Whilst the UK government are pouring money into the broadband infrastructure to try to give it a bit of a boost, it’s acknowledged in many circles that they will never reach the proposed targets using the existing cable infrastructure.

It is acknowledged across Europe that the targets will never be met by traditional cabled broadband suppliers and that satellite internet is the ONLY answer to the problems experienced by many areas.

Enter the next generation of internet available to just about everyone across Europe, satellite internet. OK, it’s not cheap as chips, but then it doesn’t have that vinegar after taste and it does provide you with more or less what you pay for.

Speeds up to 20Mbps download are available with prices starting as low as €10.95 (£9.99 UK) a month.

So what are you waiting for, contact us today and get yours ordered NOW for prompt installation. Current offers include free equipment. Check here for more information.

Clive Gray (Enterprises) (trading as Clive Gray Computers & Premier Voip Solution) are agents for Europasat (formerly ToowayDirect).

Europasat are Europes largest independent satellite broadband internet service provider (ISP) and are the ONLY ISP that can connect you to any of the 3 next generation satellite networks ANYWHERE in Europe.

Europasat are part of the Satellite Solutions Worldwide family.

In addition to supplying satellite internet, we can also offer voip telephone systems that will work over satellite internet, many companies can't.

All registered brand names and trade marks acknowledged.

I love these other companies trying to beat us and our suppliers, their marketing blurb is absolutely fascinating.

I know some of you out there get emails from Amanda at Fortec Communications, I know I do because the make me laugh.

Well their latest missive, if you haven't already got yours, tells how you can receive payment from them for introducing new customers which is great. Perhaps I ought to take a leaf out of their book.

There is a catch though - read this offer: "A payment of 30€ per client if you introduce up to 10 new clients to us in one month and can invoice us."

See the catch - you have to be able to invoice them - how many of you are in a position to do that - anybody? Not unless you're in business anyway.

Now here's another item that made me laugh so loud, my wife wondered what was happening. One of the Fortec websites, Satbroadbandspain, makes this claim: "The only satellite broadband supplier in Spain offering packages with  unlimited download and upload at all speeds."

This, of course, is a total untruth. The only other word I can use to describe this claim is a lie. We have been doing exactly the same for over two years so I know it's untrue.

• We have been installing Tooway Satellite Internet for over two years.
• We have been installing our voip service to Tooway customers for the same period.
• We do not make claims that cannot be substantiated and that's why we're still here after more than six years in business.

In fact, pricewise, we have seen very little that Fortec Communications can beat us on.

All the marketing emails I've had from Fortec Communications contain - how can we say this - contain exaggerated claims, such as "Fast broadband internet" running at 512K - half a Meg!?! - fast!?! - not when I last checked.

So my lesson for today is:- Don't get carried away on the euphoria of claims made in marketing emails. Check what they're saying is actually true.

We’re delighted to announce that ToowayDirect is now EuropaSat.

Following two and half years of very successful and close alignment with the Tooway brand, we feel it’s time to step up the satellite broadband game and offer our customers more choice, and most importantly, the ability to give independent, unbiased advice.

As part of the rebranding, we’ve created the new EuropaSat.com website which gives customers the chance to easily search and compare all of Europe’s satellite broadband products and to decide which one’s best for them, wherever they are.

Our team of satellite broadband experts and our network of Resellers are also on the end of the phone to give you simple, impartial advice on the products, and which one’s right for you.

EuropaSat’s Managing Director Andrew Walwyn said

“We’ve been planning to launch a new independent satellite brand since late in 2012 when we could see that a number of new options and networks were coming on-line in 2013.

“Whilst much of our success has been as a result of our special relationship with Tooway and Eutelsat which of course continues, we felt we needed to open the market up to other customers. People who wanted to deal with us, but for various reasons weren’t a good fit for the Tooway product portfolio.

“The new brand is another step forward in our mission to ensure that wherever you are in Europe, you won’t be excluded from fast broadband and the quality of life that it can deliver.

“Our new brand and website, and our expanded commercial relationships, mean a wider choice of tariffs and services for our customers, and mean that our reach and coverage is even more comprehensive.

“It also enables us to service our resellers and their customer’s requirements more effectively.

“I guess you can draw an analogy with the GSM mobile phone industry where it’s quite common to have two or three different networks all offering slightly different deals and coverage in each country.

“We’d like to thank all the customers who joined us under the ToowayDirect brand for their on-going business. We’d also like to let all our customers, resellers and partners know that in the next few months we have lots of exciting developments in the pipeline to enhance and improve all our network offerings.”

EuropaSat is the only satellite broadband ISP that can connect you to any of Europe’s latest generation satellite services. EuropaSat also offers special, unique tariffs that you won’t find elsewhere to make sure we can look after every type of customer or internet user that wants to look at the satellite option.

ToowayDirect rebranding to EuropaSat FAQ’s
Why have you changed your name from ToowayDirect to EuropaSat?
We felt that the market for satellite broadband in Europe has evolved and developed since we launched ToowayDirect. There are now other satellite networks and products that fill gaps for our customers that Tooway couldn’t fill. We felt strongly that we wanted to be able to give our customers the best choice of products and be able to offer objective, neutral advice on which satellite broadband product or service was best for them. Our rebranding means we can do that.

What does the change mean, am I still dealing with the same people?
ToowayDirect and EuropaSat are brands owned and operated by Satellite Solutions Worldwide Ltd. Whilst the name and the website have changed, the company and the people are identical, as is our address, VAT, bank details and phone numbers.

What do I do if I’m an existing ToowayDirect customer on Tooway?
If you’re an existing customer of ours on a Tooway service, nothing changes, you’ll be dealing with the same team, the same company, and your contract and service isn’t changing or affected.

Can this mean that Tooway isn’t the best product for me anymore?
Tooway’s satellite broadband services remain at the leading edge of the satellite internet revolution and remain the fastest satellite based services available across Europe. If you have Tooway installed at your home or business, it’s very probably still the best product for you.

We continue to have many thousands of our customers on Tooway services, and will continue to recommend Tooway to customers wherever it’s the best product for the customer’s needs.

There are situations however where we want to be able to recommend other products or networks to new customers, for instance if a customer’s location doesn’t allow clear line of site to the Tooway satellite, or if they want a type of tariff that Tooway doesn’t currently offer like pay-as-you-go or Volume Based Billing.

Can I change to one of the new tariffs on your other networks?
You can do, but you’d have to buy new satellite broadband hardware as the dish and modem used is different for each satellite network.