Isle of Man: Internet and E-Commerce Facilities

Back to Isle of Man Information: Business, Taxation and Offshore

In this Section:

- Isle of Man Business Environment
- Isle of Man Telecommunications
- Isle of Man Banking and Financial Services
- Isle of Man Professional Services
- Isle of Man Trust Management
- Isle of Man Residence and Property
- Isle of Man the Labour Market

Isle of Man Internet and E-Commerce Facilities

Apart from the Internet services delivered by Manx Telecom, there are a number of independent Internet Service Providers, Web Hosting Operators, Business Continuity and IT Co-location Providers, all of which combine to provide a vibrant, competitive and increasingly creative telecoms and IT Sector.

At the time of writing there are at least five Internet Service Providers on the Isle of Man, all of whom also offer hosting facilities.

In 1996 the Isle of Man Government obtained permission to use the .im National Top Level Domain (TLD) and has ultimate responsibility for its use. The domain is managed on a daily basis by Advanced Systems Consultants, an Island-based Internet Service Provider. A naming committee consisting of representatives from the Manx Government and local industry considers all domain applications.

There are a number of firms on the Isle of Man which offer e-commerce packages or e-business support, and several of these are consortia. In one case, for instance, there is a joint venture between a management consultancy, an Internet facilities house, a law firm and Manx Telecom. This approach ensures that all necessary skills are brought to bear on the setting-up of an offshore e-commerce operation.

Several firms offer comprehensive support to retail e-commerce operations, typically including the following components:

• domain name, hosting and site statistics;
• secure space for customer ordering form;
• home, company information and other pages as required;
• product catalogue, shopping basket and ordering facility;
• catalogue design and construction including photography;
• keyword-based search engine positioning;
• payment-processing solutions from an external service;
• continuing site updating service.

In July, 2006, Manx Telecom said that broadband penetration on the Isle of Man was 60% higher than that of the OECD average, confirming the jurisdiction as one of the world's leading e-economies.

Announcing that more than 10,000 broadband connections had been achieved on the island, Manx Telecom stated that ADSL broadband penetration on the Island was 12.7 connections per 100 of population. By comparison, a recent OECD report on broadband take-up around the world showed that the Island is ahead of both the UK and Ireland in the number of DSL connections – they trail at 11.5 and 5.0 respectively.

Since launching the service some years ago, Manx Telecom says that it had made a multi-million pound investment in Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) core equipment, providing unrivalled levels of coverage – 99.8% - compared to other European countries. Furthermore, price reductions and increased availability have seen its popularity soar, with the number of connections growing by over 50% during the last twelve months.

ADSL technology provides broadband Internet access over a standard telephone line, effectively ‘splitting’ the line so that it can be used simultaneously for both voice calls and high-speed Internet browsing.

The Isle of Man became one of the first ten countries in the world with ADSL broadband services when Manx Telecom first enabled the Douglas exchange in March 2000 to offer business broadband services. By June 2001 both business and residential ADSL broadband services had been rolled out to Ramsey, Castletown, Peel, Port Erin and Marown exchanges, and by June 2003 all eleven exchanges on the Island had been ADSL-enabled.

Chris Hall, managing director of Manx Telecom commented: “We are delighted to have reached the 10,000 connections milestone and proud that our investment has provided a high quality service that is available to nearly all households on the Island."

"We are all aware, through TV and press advertising in the UK, of ISPs offering what look like very cheap high-speed broadband deals. However it is important to bear in mind that most of these low cost services are only offered where they are economically viable – in other words in the major cities where the number of customers served by a single exchange is often significantly more customers than the entire population of the Isle of Man, and furthermore there are often considerable additional costs 'hidden' in the small print.”

Mr Hall continued: “Nevertheless, MT is committed to continuing to enhance and improve its broadband offerings, and we are constantly striving to reduce our costs so that we can pass these savings on to our customers. In addition, in response to customer feedback, our in-house ISP, ManxNet, is currently finalising plans to introduce a lower-priced ‘entry-level’ broadband service, which should be very attractive for any internet users yet to experience the exciting performance available from an ‘always-on’ high speed broadband connection.”

The take-up of broadband has also been supported by Isle of Man Government’s policy of subsidising initial connection charges to customers.

“These latest figures help to demonstrate how the 'e-Island' dream is fast becoming a reality, as they show how well the Island ranks against other leading e-enabled jurisdictions around the world," noted Tim Craine, the Isle of Man’s Director of e-Business.

"The initiative involving funding from Government via the DTI, to cover the cost of a broadband connection for individuals and businesses has certainly helped to drive the rapid increase in broadband connections in recent years," he added.

In January 2009, Manx Telecom announced the completion of a major upgrade to the Island’s telecommunications network which means that the company’s 21,000 broadband users will be able to take advantage of download speeds of up to 8Mb/s (8 Megabits per second). The upgrade is part of Manx Telecom’s GBP25m Next Generation Network project which will ultimately enable personal and business customers to access and manipulate voice calls, data, television, and video, on one seamless ‘converged’ network.

Implementing the Next Generation Network, which took place during 2009, meant migrating more than 60,000 fixed lines to the new digital platform. The Next Generation Network represents one of the biggest investments in technology the Island has ever seen and, when complete, the Island will be the first country in the world to have everything running off one secure converged Telecoms network.

In December 2009, the Isle of Man government’s Communications Commission launched a consultation as part of a revision of regulation on communications.

The Telecommunications Act dates back to 1984 and the Broadcasting Act has remained largely unchanged since 1993; both were drafted in a largely pre-mobile, pre-digital and pre-Internet age. The Commission is therefore looking to update the Island's communications law in order, in its view, to ensure the Island’s infrastructure remains cutting-edge so as to remain competitive and to develop new wealth-creating industries, as well as to ensure the Island has the best regulatory framework to enable continual development of its communications networks and services for residents, visitors and businesses.

Twenty-two responses were received, the majority of which agreed with the Commission’s recommendation that a new approach to communications regulation tailored to the Island’s unique position was needed.

In August 2010, Adrian Earnshaw, Chairman of the Communications Commission, announced that approval had been obtained from the Council of Ministers’ to begin the process of updating the Island’s communications legislation.

By March 2012, work to update the island's telecommunication and broadcasting legislation was continuing. Draft legislation is expected to be published for consultation later in the year.

Back to Isle of Man Information: Business, Taxation and Offshore