News Burst: Dixons unveils @jakarta

The Group, which is set to launch its first store on November 21st at the Lakeside Shopping Centre in Thurrock, has made a series of new announcements that are likely to shakeup the retail market.

This month, the group launched its own-brand, £599 Patriot PC. And its free internet service, Freeserve, which launched only two months ago has already attracted 475,000 subscribers, placing it just 25,000 customers behind UK market leader AOL and ahead of former number two, CompuServe.

But most recently, the group has been fending off criticism of its PC pricing policy by PC companies, consumer watchdogs and most prominently, chip giant Intel. Craig Barrett, Intel Chief executive, launched a verbal attack on Dixon's "ridiculous margins" at Comdex Fall.