GO would like to give an update on the major fault in the submarine fibre-optic cable linking Malta to Sicily. The latest update is that the services powered by this cable, including broadband-related services, international voice traffic, and roaming, have been restored and in the next few hours the situation will be totally back to normal. Most of the repair works in mainland Catania have already been completed by Telecom Italia. Earlier in the day, the fault in the cable had been localised in mainland Sicily, and has been caused by a third party Italian contractor. The fault was located in Catania around 3 kilometres away from the Telecom Italia equipment site. The Italian technical personnel and their GO counterparts worked hard to ... Read more...

I am writing in order to express my concern about the advertising and sale of a new energy drink called Cocaine, which has recently been introduced to the Maltese market. The promotion and sale of this drink is ethically irresponsible, and should cease immediately before its message reaches any more young people. The slogan attached to this campaign, 'Be Smart, Do the Drink' is a poor attempt at justifying its presence on the market. Rather than carrying an anti-drug message, the advertising campaign lends a positive meaning to the word 'Cocaine', and encourages young people to associate the term with positive connotations. This is notwithstanding the fact the energy ... Read more...

Updated: GO has issued a statement advising its customers that due to a major fault in the submarine cable linking Malta to Sicily, internet services as well as the international voice services are currently down. GO technical staff are working hard to identify the source of the problem and restore the submarine cable link. The company is also trying to establish whether the fault was caused by a third party. Meanwhile, a limited internet and international voice service is being provided via a microwave link with Sicily as well as satellite communication services. The company apologises for any inconvenience caused, and assures its customers that it is doing its utmost to have the service restored back to normal as early as ... Read more...

Malta International Airport passenger movements on scheduled and non-scheduled flights during the month of July increased slightly when compared to the same month in 2007. The total passenger movements in July 2008 increased by 1.3% for a total of 370,873 movements whilst aircraft movements decreased by 3.2% for a total of 2,965. The seat capacity also decreased, albeit slightly, by 4,034 (-0.8%) but the seat load factor increased by 1.6% to an average of 77.7%. Cargo and mail handled at MIA during the month of July was of 1,537 tonnes, a decrease of 3.5% when compared to July 2007. A further analysis of the trends of the main markets shows that MIA had a significant decrease from the UK market which was however compensated ... Read more...

In a brief statement, the Health Department has said that the condition of Labour MP Dr Karl Chircop remains very serious and is giving cause for concern. Dr Chircop is in a deep coma at Mater Dei Hospital after suffering from a cerebral haemorrhage on Sunday evening. The Health Department statement also reiterated his family's appreciation for the support they have been given and the need for their privacy to be respected.

As at the end of March 2008, subscriptions to all forms of communication technology increased. Postal traffic totalled 25.3 million items. Telecommunications - In the quarter under review, the absolute number of mobile telephone subscriptions reached 372,009, which roughly translates into 90.3 per cent of the population. Contractbased mobile telephone subscriptions were recorded at 39,594, while card-plan subscriptions reached 332,415. The fixed-telephone subscription index increased by 8.6 per cent from 105.6 in 2007 Q1 to 114.7 in the comparable quarter this year. Minutes used from fixed-line telephony amounted to around 134 million, while international fixed-telephony traffic comprised 465,288 calls, equivalent to around 1.5 million minutes. VOIP minutes were estimated at around 9.6 million in the quarter under review. These cover all internet based telephony systems. Internet, ... Read more...

The Malta Labour Party elections were concluded last night with the election of ten new members of the National Executive Committee. The newly elected members are Claudette Abela Baldacchino, Mario Azzopardi, Guza Cassar, Gino Cauchi, Chris Cilia, Charlon Gouder, Alfred Grixti, Alexander Sciberras, Salvu Seychell, and Nikita Zammit Alamango. On Monday evening, elections were held for the top posts in the Labour party which saw Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi and Jason Micallef re-elected as President and Party General Secretary respectively.

Tickets are now on sale for the general standing area for the Gozo Music Festival happening on the 23rd of August 2008 at the Gozitan Complex, on the main road from the Mgarr Harbour, they will be selling at €30. Vodafone Malta customers are being offered discounted tickets at €20 each from any Vodafone Retail Outlet, whilst the VIP tickets are sold out. The festival, organised by Dynamic Promotions, is sponsored by Vodafone Malta Limited. This year's edition of the Gozo Music Festival will offer its followers an exciting atmosphere throughout the night. The German pop music duo Modern Talking will give a live concert on the first stage. This stage will also host Ira Losco, Tribali, Cash & Band, Morena, Zoo Team,The ... Read more...

The Minister for Gozo, Giovanna Debono, has recently inaugurated an art exhibition organised by Art Club 2000. The exhibition is currently showing at the Exhibition Hall of the Ministry for Gozo in Victoria's St Francis Square. The exhibition is running up to the 28th of August. The opening hours are Monday to Friday from 8.00am to 1.00pm and Saturdays from 9.00am to 12.00 noon.

GO Plus TV have said that their customers are invited to experience the sheer thrill of action showing live and exclusive on its Sports+ channels throughout the month of August. Viewers have the unique opportunity to access the Sports+ line-up available on the four channels and enjoy the exceptional range of top notch international sports events featuring football, rugby, golf - and much more. "Football fans can sit back this summer and enjoy some amazing matches as the top European clubs battle it out in various tournaments around the world. Manchester Utd will play against Portsmouth as part of the FA Community Shield 2008 while Celtic, Tottenham, Feyenoord and Borrusia Dortmund head to Rotterdam for the Rotterdam Tournament. Sports+ will be treating its football fans ... Read more...