Yep. Lack of effective regulation.

In financial services, new regulation called "treating customers fairly" has come in. It is the first example of principle based regulation. The best way I can describe it is by an analogy to driving down a road. The rules simply say "don't speed" but they don't tell you what speeding is, so you have to consider what view a speed policeman would take of your speed.

Bear with me. This is relevant.

This means that banks etc are being told that if any aspect of how they treat their customers would look bad in the papers then they may find they get fined for it.

Now I said that financial services is the test case. Current expectations are that principle based regulation will get rolled out across more and more regulated industries, and personally I can't wait for the day when OFCOM starts fining these guys.

NERRRRRST

I hear a lot of friends complaining about virgin in a variety of guises.

10 years ago it was a totally different brand, was cool and offered good quality at a price you were prepared to pay.

Now it's too big. He's bought companies that were totally rubbish and he's failed to change them - the trains and media being prime examples.

I had been with Virgin for 3 years prior to moving house, and I have to tell you - not signing back up with Richard Branson's ginger step child of a company is the best thing I have ever done.

Not only did they screw me continuously on my TV, the best example of which being failing to broadcast a pay per view premium sports event then failing to air it due to technical difficulties, but my internet is now a whole world better.

I'm paying no more, and my new isp have provided fresh equipment (modem, etc) so everything is squeaky clean and cool. Much more then Virgin ever did, not that they're equipment didn't work, but they failed to supply that too, ever. And I don't get abused as an existing customer while fresh blood is given preferential treatment.

It's so refreshing it's untrue.

For those of you who are looking to leave Virgin - I went to Supanet.com