Consumer Internet access provider, Storm at Home, has partnered with Microcom in a deal that will see individuals who buy any Microcom 56k analogue modem or Microcom ISDN modem, receive free Internet access for three months, with no strings attached.

Users will be able to choose from any one of Storm at Home"s products. These include Connect15, providing Internet access between 18h00 and 09h00 Monday to Friday and all through the weekend, and the all-day access product, Connect24.

Toby Jermyn, marketing manager for Storm at Home, says: "People will not have to cancel their existing subscriptions to other ISPs, and can run these services at the same time. This way they can test our service and compare it to their current paid-for offering and do a comparison."

Jermyn is adamant that users will see for themselves that Storm at Home, with its new Compressor software (reaching dial-up surfing speeds of up to 100kbps) "is the fastest dial-up Internet service in the country, and they will want to move their subscription to Storm at Home."

"I am confident that no other consumer ISP will stand up to a comparison with our speed and service," Jermyn continues. "Once the three-month free Internet access has come to an end, customers will be able to choose whether to sign up, after which they will be billed on a month to month basis."

Jermyn says that he is also prepared to give three months free Internet access to current Storm at Home subscribers who buy a Microcom modem.

Ronny Russell, Microcom business development manager at Comztek, says: "Modem sales remains a competitive and fairly commoditized market, so we are always looking for ways to increase the value offering of our products, such as the current three months free Internet access bundle.

"We partnered with Storm at Home because it is prepared to give something back to customers. This is a no-risk deal - it is not about forcing people into contracts to qualify for discounts or any other kind of marketing ploy, it is just simple and fast Internet connectivity," Russell concludes.