Freeserve has shelved plans to change it name to Wanadoo.

The move to bring Freeserve's brand in line with its French parent was floated six months ago and was backed by Wanadoo chief exec Nicolas Dufourcq. Had the makeover - estimated to cost as much as £30m - been given the green light it was scheduled to go-ahead early this year.

But the move was blocked after a three-month evaluation. A final decision not to proceed was made this week.

Such a move would also have meant that Freeserve's 2.5m users would have had the upheaval of changing their email addresses. Many customers and industry watchers believed any move to ditch the Freeserve name would have been pure folly on behalf of the ISP.

A spokeswoman for Freeserve said they had decided not to pursue the issue of rebranding after an "extensive evaluation" with customers and stakeholders. "There is a huge strength of feeling for the Freeserve brand in the UK," she said. ®

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