The How To Maximize Usenet Media Access In The USA & Canada

To get the most comprehensive access to the Usenet, this is my recommended provider combination for users in the USA or Canada:

1. UsenetServer (the Omicron backbone)
2. ViperNews (an independent backbone)

A combination of two of these providers offers excellent coverage. Using all three will give you the most compressive coverage available.

You’ll also want a comprehensive Usenet index like NZB.su. This Usenet index costs $15 per year for access, but it is worth it because it is extensive and covers older media/articles. Another alternative is NZBGeek.

More Details On Maximizing Usenet Access

UsenetServer is a reliable Tier-1 provider using the popular and ubiquitous Omicron backbone.

ViperNews is another Tier-1 provider. It’s a genuinely independent backbone, thus making it an excellent complement to the other backbones.

The idea is to get access to as many Usenet files and messages as possible. You can do this by choosing providers on different Usenet backbones (see a complete list of backbones below).

The advantages are:

• Redundancy – If one provider has an outage or fails to grab a particular file, the other providers can fill in the gaps. This ensures a higher success rate of downloading files.
• Higher download speeds – Combining the bandwidth of multiple providers can give you higher overall download speeds.
• Access to more content – Different providers may have access to different content. Using multiple providers gives you access to a broader range of files and newsgroups.

A List Of All Usenet Backbones

US & European Backbone 1 — Omicron (HW Media)

• US & European-based servers
• 3700+ days of retention
• Unlimited & block accounts
• Follows DMCA
• Recommended providers: NewsDemon (full details here)
• Other providers: Newsgroup Ninja, Astraweb, BlockNews, Frugal Usenet, NewsgroupDirect, ThunderNews

US and European Backbone 2 – Giganews

• US & European-based servers
• 1100+ days of retention
• Offers accounts with unlimited downloads (no block accounts)
• Follows DMCA
• Providers: Giganews, Supernews

US-Only Backbone 1 – UsenetExpress

• hybrid retention – 365+ days primary/1100+ days secondary via Abavia
• Unlimited & block accounts
• Follows DMCA
• Providers: UsenetExpress (full details here)

US-Only Backbone 2 – Altopia

• 20+ days of retention
• Offers accounts with unlimited downloading (no block accounts)
• Follows DMCA
• Providers: Altopia

European-Only Backbone 1 – Omicron (Eweka)

• 3700+ days of retention
• Offers accounts with unlimited downloading (no block accounts)
• Follows NTD
• Recommended provider: Eweka (full details here)

European-Only Backbone 2 – Omicron (Tweaknews)

• 3200+ days of retention
• Offers accounts with unlimited downloads (no block accounts)
• Follows NTD
• Recommended provider: Tweaknews (full details here)

European-Only Backbone 3: Omicron (XLned)

• 3000+ days of retention
• Offers accounts with unlimited downloading (no block accounts)
• Follows DMCA
• Recommended providers: XLned (full details here)
• Other providers: SunnyUsenet, UsenetBucket

European-Only Backbone 4 – Usenet.Farm

• hybrid retention – 70 days primary/1000+ days secondary
• Unlimited & block accounts
• Follows NTD for primary retention, DMCA for secondary retention via Abavia
• Recommended provider: Usenet.Farm (full details here)

European-Only Backbone 5 – Abavia

• 1100+ days of retention
• Unlimited & block accounts
• Follows DMCA
• Recommended providers: XS News (full details here)
• Other providers: XS Usenet, Bulknews, Cheapnews

European-Only Backbone 6 – ViperNews

• 30+ days of retention
• Offers accounts with unlimited downloading (no block accounts)
• Follows NTD
• Provider: ViperNews