Ireland On-Line (IOL) is a large ISP in the Republic of Ireland, and is owned by BT Ireland. The largest internet service in Ireland is Eircom. It was the first commercial internet service provider in the state. The company is one of Ireland's largest ISPs and offers email in addition to other Internet related services. It provides a free (IOL Free) as well as a paid-for (IOL Gold) dial-up service, as well as a broadband internet service.
History
The company was formed in 1992 by Barry Flanagan. In 1997, the company was bought by An Post for IEP 2.5m. Two years later, it was sold to Esat Telecom Group plc for IEP 115m. A year later, Esat Telecom was taken over by British Telecommunications plc. The company then merged with BT's existing Irish ISP, oceanfree.net. The oceanfree.net service is no longer marketed, but the web portal and free email service remain.
