Unipalm was a U.K.-based company that operated between 1986 and 2003 that specialised in networking different computers together using TCP/IP technology and was an early promoter of internet technology.
Unipalm Ltd was founded as a software reseller in Cambridge in 1986 by Peter Dawe, later forming PIPEX in 1990, as the first commercial ISP in the UK. In its very early days, their office was in Hardwick, Cambridgeshire (UK) [1] [2]
In March 1994 Unipalm Group Plc floated on the London Stock Exchange, the purpose of the flotation was to expand the growth of The Public I.P. Exchange Ltd (Pipex).
In July 1995 the company changed its trading name to Unipalm-Pipex. [3]
Unipalm PIPEX was sold to UUNet in November 1995 for GBP150 million, where it became UUNET/PIPEX. Dawe became Head of European Operations for UUNet Inc., with over 400 staff. Dawe left UUNet in July 1996. [4] In 1996 it was reported that Unipalm-Pipex was the largest internet service provider in Europe. [5]
In December 1996, Mark Norman led a successful management buy out of Unipalm. This re-established Unipalm as a separate company, moving location to offices in Newmarket, Suffolk. The company focussed on IP software distribution and services. In May 2000, German based company Computerlinks AG acquired 100% of the shares of Unipalm. [6]
The company maintained a high level of independence until 2003 when the Unipalm name was dropped and began trading as Computerlinks UK. Unipalm changed its name to Computerlinks in 2006. [7] [8]
Philip R. Zimmermann is an American computer scientist and cryptographer. He is the creator of Pretty Good Privacy (PGP), the most widely used email encryption software in the world. He is also known for his work in VoIP encryption protocols, notably ZRTP and Zfone. Zimmermann is co-founder and Chief Scientist of the global encrypted communications firm Silent Circle.
The London Internet Exchange ("LINX") is a mutually governed Internet exchange point (IXP) that provides peering services and public policy representation to network operators. It was founded in 1994 in London. LINX operates IXPs in London, Manchester, Scotland and Wales in the United Kingdom and Northern Virginia in the United States.
Pipex was the United Kingdom's first commercial Internet service provider (ISP). It was formed in 1990 and helped to develop the ISP market in the UK. In 1992 it began operating a 64k transatlantic leased line and built a connection to the UK government's JANET network. One of its first customers was Demon Internet which popularised dial up modem based internet access in the UK. It was also one of the key players in the development of the London Internet Exchange through a meeting with BT in 1994.
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An online service provider (OSP) can, for example, be an Internet service provider, an email provider, a news provider (press), an entertainment provider, a search engine, an e-commerce site, an online banking site, a health site, an official government site, social media, a wiki, or a Usenet newsgroup.
Demon Internet was a British Internet service provider, initially an independent business, later operating as a brand of Vodafone. It was one of the UK's earliest ISPs, offering dial-up Internet access services from 1 June 1992. According to the Daily Telegraph, it "sparked a revolution by becoming the first to provide genuinely affordable access to the internet in the UK".
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Richard L. "Rick" Adams, Jr. is an American Internet pioneer and the founder of UUNET, which, in the mid and late 1990s, was the world's largest Internet Service Provider (ISP).
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Tessellis S.p.A. is an Italian telecommunications company founded in 1998 and based in Cagliari, Sardinia, that provides Internet and telecommunications services in Italy, and, previously had operations in other European nations through its acquisition of many smaller European Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the late 1990s.
VocalTec Communications Inc. is an Israeli telecom equipment provider. The company was founded in 1985 by Alon Cohen and Lior Haramaty, who patented the first Voice over IP audio transceiver. VocalTec has supplied major customers such as Deutsche Telekom, Telecom Italia, and many others.
OzEmail was a major Internet service provider (ISP) in Australia, until it was acquired by iiNet on 28 February 2005.
MYOB is an Australian multinational corporation that provides tax, accounting and other business services software to small and medium businesses. It is owned by KKR.
The Commercial Internet eXchange (CIX) was an early interexchange point that allowed the free exchange of TCP/IP traffic, including commercial traffic, between ISPs. It was an important initial effort toward creating the commercial Internet that we know today
So-net is a Japanese internet service provider operated by Sony Network Communications Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony.
Host Europe Group was an American-owned, European-located website hosting, email and domain name registrar company headquartered Hayes, West London. Founded as GX Networks in 1997, the company was renamed Pipex Communications plc following its takeover of Pipex in 2003. It reverted to the GX Networks name following its sale of Pipex in 2008 before being renamed Host Europe Group in 2009. It was acquired by American hosting company GoDaddy in 2017, and as of 2019 its name was in the process of being phased out.
EarthLink is an American Internet service provider.
Peter Dawe is a British Internet entrepreneur known for founding Pipex, the commercial internet service provider, and the Internet Watch Foundation.
