Unipalm was a U.K.-based company that operated between 1986 and 2003 that specialised in networking different computers together using

TCP/IP The Internet protocol suite, commonly known as TCP/IP, is a framework for organizing the communication protocols used in the Internet and similar computer networks according to functional criteria. The foundational protocols in the suite are ...

technology and was an early promoter of internet technology.

History

Unipalm Ltd was founded as a software reseller in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

in 1986 by Peter Dawe, later forming

PIPEX Pipex ( ) was the United Kingdom's first commercial Internet service provider (ISP). It was formed in 1990 and helped to develop the ISP market in the UK. In 1992 it began operating a 64k transatlantic leased line and built a connection to the U ...

in 1990, as the first commercial

ISP An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides a myriad of services related to accessing, using, managing, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non ...

in the UK. In its very early days, their office was in Hardwick, Cambridgeshire (UK) In March 1994 ''Unipalm Group Plc'' floated on the

London Stock Exchange The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...

, the purpose of the flotation was to expand the growth of ''The Public I.P. Exchange Ltd'' (

Pipex Pipex ( ) was the United Kingdom's first commercial Internet service provider (ISP). It was formed in 1990 and helped to develop the ISP market in the UK. In 1992 it began operating a 64k transatlantic leased line and built a connection to the U ...

). In July 1995 the company changed its trading name to Unipalm-Pipex. ''Unipalm PIPEX'' was sold to

UUNet UUNET Technologies, Inc., formerly UUNET Communications Services, was an American commercial Internet service provider. Founded in 1987, it was one of the first and largest commercial ISPs and one of the early Tier 1 networks. It was based in ...

in November 1995 for GBP150 million, where it became UUNET/PIPEX. Dawe became Head of European Operations for UUNet Inc., with over 400 staff. Dawe left UUNet in July 1996. In 1996 it was reported that Unipalm-Pipex was the largest

internet service provider An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides a myriad of services related to accessing, using, managing, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, no ...

in Europe. In December 1996, Mark Norman led a successful management buy out of Unipalm. This re-established Unipalm as a separate company, moving location to offices in Newmarket, Suffolk. The company focussed on IP software distribution and services. In May 2000, German based company Computerlinks AG acquired 100% of the shares of Unipalm. The company maintained a high level of independence until 2003 when the Unipalm name was dropped and began trading as Computerlinks UK. Unipalm changed its name to Computerlinks in 2006.

History

See also

References

Further reading