Administrators running the UK's academic network, JANET, are looking for an alternative carrier as concern grows that that KPNQwest is to go belly up.

Last week the Dutch telco filed for bankruptcy protection after the banks pulled the plug on its credit facility. KPNQwest has yet to reach an agreement with a potential buyer, without which the company may have to pull the plug on its network.

Yesterday the company advised customers to make "contingency plans" and warned that the company's financial problems are likely to affect the performance of KPNQwest's EuroRings network.

In a statement to academic sysadmins, the UK Education & Research Networking Association (which runs JANET) said: "maintenance levels are currently unclear and UKERNA is in the process of negotiating transit from an alternative provider to be installed as soon as possible.

"It should be possible to install this before any interruption to service occurs," it adds. ®

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