Internet Services provided by Profile and Zen Internet

Internet & Hosting

Award Winning Services from Zen Internet and Profile - read the article.

Broadband

Via Zen Internet, Profile is able to provide a range of Broadband services to cater for your company's needs, from smaller packages which offer generous monthly download usage allowances with the added flexibility to purchase extra usage whenever your business requires, to larger packages which are ideal for businesses utilising technologies such as Video conferencing and Virtual Private Networking. There are a range of speeds available depending upon the package that is most suitable for your needs. Zen Internet can also provide 21CN services to match the line upgrades from BT which could provide your company with download speeds of up to 20Mbps.

Other services Profile can provide with Zen Internet:

Leased Lines and Ethernet

Leased Lines and Ethernet are the business class connectivity solutions from Zen Internet. We offer a comprehensive product range to suit all accessibility requirements - enhanced by our own robust, resilient network infrastructure - to provide solutions across the UK. Our product range is ideal for businesses requiring high speed, reliable Internet or site-to-site connectivity 24/7, all backed by a service level guarantee. For more information about this, please read the product-sheet supplied in the More Information box, or contact us on 08000 195101 to discuss you business needs.

Co-location

Our Co-location services, provided by Zen Internet, are a cost effective way of securely hosting your mission critical IT infrastructure together with providing reliable and fast Internet access. We offer both shared and dedicated options to suit your specific requirements. Shared racks are ideal if you have a small amount of equipment. Dedicated racks provide more capacity together with a lockable and private environment for your hardware. For more information about this service, please read the product-sheet supplied in the More Information box, or contact us on 08000 195101 to discuss you business needs.

Dedicated Servers

A Dedicated Server, supplied by Zen Internet, gives your company the freedom to operate and manage your own server environment, backed by Zen's award winning network, service and support. For companies who wish to expand but perhaps not host their own server this would be an ideal service. For more information about this, please read the product-sheet supplied in the More Information box, or contact us on 08000 195101 to discuss you business needs.

Domains & Web Hosting

For many businesses creating and managing a Web site is not always easy and often takes up precious time that is needed for other core business tasks. Whether you need to create or develop a new Web site or simply need someone to host your existing Web site, we can offer something to fit your requirements. For more information about this, please visit our Web Design section and read the product-sheet supplied in the More Information box, or contact us on 08000 195101 to discuss you business needs.

Managed Hosting

If your business has mission critical applications (such as databases, e-commerce Web sites, and e-mail) then downtime simply isn't an option. With our managed Windows servers you are allocated your very own, custom-built hardware platform which is set up, configured and maintained by our team of accredited hosting engineers. For more information about this, please read the product-sheet supplied in the More Information box, or contact us on 08000 195101 to discuss you business needs.

Online Data Back-Up

Online data backup provides you with the peace of mind that, in the event of data loss, your data is fully backed up and recoverable within minutes. Our solutions, from Zen Internet, allow you to set your own desired backup schedule, providing additional flexibility. For more information about this, please read the product-sheet supplied in the More Information box, or contact us on 08000 195101 to discuss you business needs.

For more information about the services we can provide for your company, please read the product-sheets supplied in the More Information box, or contact us on 08000 195101 to discuss which package will be best for you.

Businss Internet

Zen's business broadband services deliver high quality, affordable broadband with fast download speeds of up to 8Mbps or up to 20Mbps depending on your telephone line and location*.

These value for money business broadband packages provide generous monthly download usage allowances with the added flexibility to purchase extra usage whenever your business requires.

	Zen Pro	Zen Active	Zen Lite
Downstream Speed*	up to 20Mbps
Upstream Speed*	up to 1Mbps
Switch to Zen Business Broadband	move to Zen from your current broadband provider for FREE
Monthly Download usage	100GB	50GB	10GB
Contract	1 month minimum contract

With the advantage of Traffic Prioritisation or Elevated Rate (product dependent), our Zen Office services provide higher download speeds than our Lite, Active and Pro services during peak usage periods.

	Zen Office Max	Zen Office
Downstream Speed*	up to 20Mbps
Upstream Speed*	up to 1Mbps
Switch to Zen Business Broadband	move to Zen from your current broadband provider for FREE
Monthly Download usage	unlimited or 1000GB^†	200GB
Contract	1 month minimum contract

Business Broadband Service Features:

UK based, premier Customer Service & Technical Support

The locally based Zen Internet Customer Service and Technical Support representatives are available to answer your queries and work effectively with the Profile SystemCare Team to ensure your company is supported at all times.

Unlimited uploads

Upload data is not included in your monthly usage allowance, therefore you upload as much information as you wish to the internet.

Choice of 1 or 8 static IP addresses

Choose from either 1 or 8 free static IP addresses when you order Zen Broadband, saving you up to £28 a month compared to some competitor charges.

11 POP3 Mailboxes

Each Broadband account has the option of having up to 11 POP3 mailboxes associated with it. One of these is provided as standard upon order confirmation and the remaining 10 can be personalised via your account in the Zen Customer Portal.

E-mail Anti-Virus Protection

Zen uses a virus definition database that can be updated at least 5 times a day, long before anything can reach your mailbox.

2GB Web space

1GB is provided as standard upon order confirmation. Another 1GB can be allocated, personalised and managed via your account in the Zen Customer Portal. These two separate blocks of Web space can be used for the development of Websites.

Back-up dial-in account

If for any reason your Broadband connection temporarily fails, you can still access important e-mails using the back-up dial-in account.

Global access to your e-mail with Zen Webmail

Check your Zen e-mail account from anywhere in the world via the zen.co.uk home page.

If you would like to discuss your broadband requirements or the services that Zen Internet and Profile provide, please contact us, or call 08000 195101.

Fibre Broadband Services

The future of broadband is here

In 2001, Zen Internet became one of the first ISPs in the UK to provide ADSL broadband services. Since then they have invested heavily in their network and their people to ensure that they lead from the front. Now, almost ten years on, Zen are amongst the first to deliver fibre broadband services making "up to 40Mbps" download speeds a reality. Upload speeds of up to 10Mbps and 'prioritised traffic' options will ensure that your broadband is ready to take on the next ten years and beyond.

Fibre Broadband Products

Zen Internet fibre broadband products will offer a high speed service that will deliver a premium internet experience and will be delivered with the same levels of reliability and service our customers expect.

	Fibre Active	Fibre Pro	Fibre Office	Fibre Office Plus
Downstream Speed	up to 40Mbps*
Minimum Downstream Speed	8Mbps		12Mbps
Upstream Speed	2Mbps	2Mbps	10Mbps	10Mbps
Monthly Download usage	50GB	100GB	200GB	500GB
Contract	12 month minimum contract

*Expected downstream speeds are largely determined by the line length.
Estimated speeds can be determined prior to purchase.

Fibre Broadband Benefits

Whether for work or pleasure, fibre broadband offers faster download speeds so you can get more out of your internet connection than ever before. Download a movie in minutes or a software update in seconds.

Upload speeds will be up to ten times our current broadband speeds increasing from around 1 Mbps to Up to 10Mbps! For businesses this will help improve VPN performance for remote workers and will drastically reduce the time taken for home users to upload photos and videos to the internet. Downstream speeds increase to 'Up to 40Mbps' with guaranteed throughput speeds of either 8 or 12Mbps ensuring a level of performance even at times when the network is busy.

With Zen's Fibre Broadband services you will be able to:

Collaborate at high-speed; sharing files with regional offices, partners or remote workers
Move your meetings online with better quality video-conferencing
Experience higher quality VoIP services
Benefit from more responsive hosted business applications such as Salesforce CRM
Stream HD video content without buffering or pauses

When can I get Fibre Broadband?

You can find out if your local telephone exchange is already FTTC enabled and what speed you can enjoy. Please note that not everyone in an upgraded exchange area will be able to access fibre broadband services. This is because some street cabinets in that area will not be upgraded. Also fibre broadband will only be offered if you are close enough to a cabinet to ensure a minimum 15Mbps service.

Not in an enabled area? Why not contact us with your interest by emailing with your contact details (name, address and existing BT phone number) and we will contact you as soon as Fibre Broadband is available.

If you would like to discuss fibre broadband or the other services that Zen Internet and Profile provide, please contact us, or call 08000 195101. If you'd like more information, check out the FAQ's and the informative PDFs.

21CN and 2009/2010 Upgrade Broadband Services for Existing Customers

The "up to 20Mbps" broadband services from Zen Internet

The key facts:

Profile and Zen Internet can provide the faster Broadband services with download speeds of up to 20Mbps and upload speeds of up to 1Mbps in the first stage of the 21CN upgrades.
If you are an existing customer, you will already be experiencing the faster broadband services as the upgrades have been completed.
We will not increase prices for the faster broadband services

Zen Internet was one of the first ISPs to embrace broadband technology in the UK and connected some of the earliest broadband circuits back in the summer of 2000. Profile and Zen Internet have a mission to provide the best ISP service in the UK. Over 2009/2010, we have completed a major technology upgrade to our broadband services. This has enabled the introduction of faster "up to 20Mbps" broadband services and bring the most significant changes to broadband since those pioneering days of 2000.

Up to 20Mbps Broadband

Existing customers will have a "like for like" broadband service at the same price but can, in most cases, expect to receive a higher speed.

The new services will provide download speeds of up to 20Mbps and upload speeds of up to 1Mbps. The speed you can expect to receive will depend on how far you are from your local BT exchange. Customers less than 3km from the local BT exchange will see the biggest improvement in speeds.

Of course, the speeds achieved will be dependent on the following factors:

The distance you are from the local BT exchange
The quality of wiring from the BT exchange to your premises
The internal wiring within your premises and interference with any other electrical equipment within your premises

How does this "up to 20Mbps" Broadband service work?

We have significantly upgraded our own network to connect with BT's new 21st Century Network (21CN) to bring you these faster broadband services. 21CN is a UK wide communication network upgrade project currently being rolled out by BT throughout the UK. This will involve enabling all BT exchanges for 21CN, including ADSL2+ broadband technology which will cover 55% of homes and businesses by March 2010, subject to demand.

Our network has been upgraded in three ways to support the new faster services:

The connection from our network to the BT local exchanges has been upgraded
The capacity of our core network has been significantly increased
The interconnections from our network into the rest of the Internet have been expanded and optimised for resiliency

Zen Internet's new "up to 20Mbps" broadband services - the customer experience

We want to ensure that moving customers onto our new "up to 20Mbps" broadband services is as smooth as possible. The aim is to move customers at no cost and with minimal inconvenience whilst maintaining our service and support levels. Zen will only move customers when they are confident in their processes and not before they are sure of achieving a successful migration.

Zen will contact each customer before they are moved over, providing at least one week's notice. Zen are contacting customers because there will be a short period when their service will be interrupted as they are moved over, although most customers will be unaware that the move has taken place. Profile have taken the view that Zen's plans are in line with providing the best customer experience and to remain open and honest at all times.

Headline and Actual Speeds:

A decision has been made that the download speed for Zen's new broadband service will be advertised as up to 20Mbps. The upload speed will be advertised as up to 1Mbps.

Other ISPs have been advertising download speeds of up to 24Mbps. BT are, however, offering download speeds of up to 20Mbps and upload speeds of up to 1Mbps for their new broadband services. Because Zen are using 21CN designed by BT, it makes sense that we offer the same headline speeds.

Based on the Zen employee trials, the best download speed has been recorded at 21Mbps, so we know the advertised speed of up to 20Mbps is achievable.

If you would like to discuss 21CN or the other services that Zen Internet and Profile provide, please contact us, or call 08000 195101.

Fibre Broadband FAQs

What is Fibre Optic Broadband?

BT Openreach is investing £2.5bn in the deployment of Fibre Optic Broadband across the UK between 2010 and 2015. This will reach 10 million homes and businesses by the summer of 2012 and around 16 million premises by 2015 equal to approximately two-thirds of the UK population. This will be deployed by two different means.

For around 75% of premises receiving fibre broadband, it will be delivered over Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) technology which will allow customers to benefit from broadband download speeds of "up to 40Mbps", with a minimum 15Mbps, and upload speeds typically from 2Mbps and "up to 10Mbps". The remainder will receive Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) services. We will be able to tell you more about FTTP later in the year.

What is Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC)?

Fibre to the Cabinet or FTTC describes a deployment where a fibre cable runs from a BT exchange to a street cabinet that contains the Broadband equipment. From here it is linked to business premises and homes via the existing BT copper network. This then connects the home or business to your Internet Service Provider's Fibre Broadband service.

Why use Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC)?

Existing broadband services provided over the BT network use traditional copper-pair cabling which was originally designed to support the telephone network. For the past ten years, the network has also proved itself able to support broadband internet connections with speeds of up to 20Mbps.

However, the capacity for copper cabling to transmit data at high speed diminishes according to the length of the line so most users receive speeds far below this. By using fibre optics for part of this connection, the line length is significantly reduced, enabling faster downloads and much faster uploads.

What actual speeds can I expect?

As copper cabling still accounts for the final part of your internet connection, length is still a significant factor in determining the actual speeds you can expect to receive. Delivered speeds can vary significantly from between 15Mbps to 40Mbps. It will be possible to get an estimate of your likely download and upload speeds ahead of purchase.

If we cannot assure a minimum download speed of 15Mbps based on the line length we will not provision a fibre broadband service to your premises.

How will Fibre Optic Broadband benefit you?

These are just a few of the expected benefits of fibre broadband:

File download and upload in seconds for quicker back-up or sharing with others
Faster internet browsing including streaming of high-definition video e.g. BBC iPlayer
Additional bandwidth will improve the performance of Virtual Private Networks making uploading and downloading of files more efficient and making working from home easier and more secure
Lower call costs by taking advantage of VoIP delivered over Fibre
Improved business services such as video-conferencing or the use of hosted applications

When will Zen Internet provide Fibre Broadband services?

Zen is undertaking a series of staff and customer trials for residents of FTTC exchange enabled areas. If you live in one of these areas you may still be able to participate in these trials. You can register your interest by emailing with your existing phone number and postcode.

When the trials are complete and Zen are satisfied that they can deliver a fibre broadband service that offers the same level of award-winning support as current broadband products, they will make these services fully available in those areas where BT have upgraded local exchanges and street cabinets.

When will my local exchange be upgraded to provide Fibre Broadband?

The following exchanges have already been FTTC enabled by BT.

They have also released details for more than 340 exchanges that will be upgraded during 2010 with a further 124 being upgraded in 2011 announced. You can find if your exchange is one of those BT planned rollout and please bear in mind that this information is subject to change and will updated on a monthly basis.

Please note that not everyone connected to an upgraded exchange will be able to receive a FTTC fibre broadband service. New fibre-ready street cabinets will not be deployed in all parts of an exchange area, while other premises may not be offered FTTC fibre broadband service due to excessive line length. Also around 10% of premises are served directly from the exchange and these will not qualify for an FTTC service. These areas may be served by Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) in the future.

What if BT has no confirmed dates for the Fibre upgrades of my local BT exchange?

BT has so far announced details of its fibre broadband roll-out for 2010 and early 2011. However, BT has confirmed that it will continue to deploy its fibre broadband infrastructure until at least 2015. By this time they will reach two-thirds of the UK population. Zen will continue to work with BT and provide updated information on our website as it becomes available.

Will my current service be disrupted by upgrading to Fibre Broadband?

If you already have an existing broadband service installed to a BT phone line, moving to fibre broadband is a simple process. Someone will need to be at the premises to allow a BT Openreach engineer onsite. The engineer will fit a new telephone face-plate at the site of the existing one and connect a VDSL modem. The VDSL modem will need to be within 1.5m of the face-plate and close to a power-supply otherwise an extension kit will be required which can be provided to you.

Will I need to upgrade my PC or other equipment to receive Fibre Optic Broadband services?

PCs will not require upgrading to use Fibre Optic Broadband. However, if you want to connect more than one PC to a single FTTC service you will require an Ethernet compatible router which Zen can provide to you. The set-up can be configured on a PC running Windows or a Mac but we cannot currently install this to computers running Linux operating systems.

Is Fibre Optic Broadband intended for Business or Residential users?

Fibre represents a major advancement in broadband technology and will offer high performance connectivity that closes the gap between shared broadband services and dedicated business connectivity products such as fibre optic Ethernet connectivity. This will give small and midsized business customers a better service at a more affordable price.

Zen are proposing to develop different Fibre Optic Broadband services to meet the specific requirements of business and residential users.

Fibre is a premium service and will be offered as an alternative to the existing Office and Office Max Broadband packages with residential packages also available.

Are there any plans for Fibre to the Premises (FTTP)?

BT has selected Zen as one of a small group of partners to participate in their trials of FTTP based fibre optic broadband. These trials will begin in July 2010 and continue to the end of the year. The trials will be limited to two locations at Bradwell Abbey (Milton Keynes) and Highams Park (North London). If you live in either of these areas and would like to register your interest in FTTP, please email with your existing phone number and postcode.