Tariam and Eutelsat solve Garage owner's broadband nightmare

Online, March 25, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Aberystwyth, Wales, 19th March 2010

Aberystwyth garage owner Lynn Davies is celebrating after his Internet connection problems were finally solved with the help of the local MP, a county councillor and the Eutelsat Tooway™ Satellite Broadband service installed and operated by Tariam.

Lynn's Modurdy Eiddwen Garage business is in a so called 'not-spot' outside the reach of fixed line broadband. As a Kawasaki All Terrain Vehicles dealership and a service and repair centre for all quad bikes, Lynn desperately needed broadband access to register new vehicles online, order spares, and make warranty claims, but life was becoming impossible due to his frustratingly slow dial-up internet connection.

Lynn said

"We could only use the internet very early in the morning or late at night and it was having a major impact on our business. It could take hours to make warranty claims and simple things like ordering spare parts or quickly looking up prices for customers were impossible."

Lynn needed a permanent broadband connection but, like many in the area, the traditional telephone providers were unable to connect him and that's where Tariam Tooway™ came in.

Local MP Mark Williams and Ceredigion County Councillor Rowland Rees-Evans knew that satellite owners Eutelsat were looking for pilot projects to demonstrate the revolutionary Tooway™ satellite broadband service and put them in touch. Today Lynn has a free, 12-month Tooway™ satellite broadband service in return for demonstrating the solution in the region. The service was supplied and installed by Tooway™ distributor Tariam Satellite Communications.

Tooway™ has been designed to deliver super fast internet connectivity to broadband not-spots via satellite. It consists of a small satellite dish and a set-top box connected to the PC direct or via a wireless router, giving customers immediate broadband access following a simple installation. In addition, the Tooway™ service has the ability to deliver Voice over IP services and Direct-to-Home television using the same Tooway™ dish.

One of Tariam's Directors, Selwyn Petterson was on hand to welcome Lynn as a customer and to get his feedback on the service.

"The new service is brilliant," said Lynn. "The installation was quick and straightforward. We have set-up a new, dedicated computer and thanks to Tooway™ the internet connection is now available around the clock and is very fast."

Mark Williams, MP, said: "I am delighted to have been able to play a part in bringing this satellite broadband trial to the area. There are large parts of the country where homes and businesses require a high-speed broadband service to prosper and it will take too long and be too expensive to connect these rural locations by telephone cable in the traditional manner. It's important that we encourage other, more cost effective options such as satellite."

Steve Petrie, Northern European Sales Director for Tooway™ said

"Tooway™ is the first satellite two-way broadband service offering speeds and running costs similar to ADSL. We are delighted to be able to demonstrate the capability of our service to deliver high-speed internet connections to homes and businesses across Wales. Tooway™ is already serving customers in more than 22 European countries and we look forward to assisting Wales in solving its broadband access challenges."

New Government legislation coming into affect in April 2010 compels all businesses turning over £100,000 or more to file their VAT returns online and pay VAT electronically. This further compounds the impossible situation faced by many small firms who can't get broadband.

If home users or businesses want to try the service at Lynn's garage, or place an order, they should contact Tariam at www.tariam.co.uk or on 08 44 874 0600