British Telecommunications Plc yesterday played down reports of a boardroom dispute after director of internet and multimedia John Swingewood resigned. A spokesperson said the split with the 27-year company veteran was amicable……he is to pursue other interests in the media industry.
UK observers were yesterday speculating that Swingewood left in protest at lack of funding for his division. BT is unusual in the European telecoms theater where it is the only major incumbent telco which is not also its country’s top ISP. The internet service provider brands provided by Deutsche Telekom AG, France Telecom SA, Telefonica SA and Telecom Italia all have the largest subscriber base in their respective nations.
During his 18 months in charge of BT’s internet business, Swingewood was responsible for services such as subscription-free internet access service BT Click; the deal to provide Sega with a multiplayer games network, and a cheap PC-with-internet-access bundle with Fujitsu Ltd. The hunt is now on for a successor, and in the meantime BT UK products & solutions managing director, Ian Morfett will handle the job.
