Among firms affected was Polestar, particularly its Watford and Colchester sites, which has switched to the Savvis network, and London Fresh Media, which despite several attempts has yet to transfer.

Its more than alarming it affected us intermittently for 24 hours, said Polestar group pre-press director Jack Bisset. Im not happy and Im not impressed.

The only fortunate aspect is that our customers use Wam!Net and understand, otherwise theyd be asking for compensation, said Fresh Media Group technical director Dominic Duffy. We are considering our position with Wam!Net very carefully.

Savvis admitted it had experienced more problems switching customers to the new network than initially expected. It is now running behind schedule for the transition, which was due to be completed by the end of last month, but will take several more weeks.

Im acutely aware of the problems it posed, said Savvis European managing director Richard Warley. Its been more technically challenging than we expected.

The company is addressing customer concerns over support staff, with additional training and further recruitment. Warley said staff had been going the extra mile to make the transition happen as smoothly as possible.

Overall when we get to the end it will be successful and customers will enjoy great benefits, said Warley.

Story by Barney Cox