UK Broadband still lags behind on international stage – What’s the Deal?

The UK was once a world leader in innovative communication technology. Some of the biggest leaps in communication in the last 150 years have been the result of the need for the British Empire to have an excellent communication network during the Victorian era.

It’s quite hard to believe that we were once the leaders in the area though, especially after reading a new report by the Communication Works of America (CWA) released this month. The report labels the UK below 30 other countries in terms of the average broadband speed of its citizens.

The report was written to highlight the need for faster broadband in the United States, and includes a state-by-state rundown of America’s internet services. However, its international ratings list America as 29th overall, while the UK is even further behind at 31st in the list.

This is a very weak position for the UK, especially when you consider how impractical broadband is in countries that have much greater problems to deal with, and smaller budgets. Countries ranking above the UK include Japan, Sweden, Germany and South Korea, who top the list with an amazing 20.4 Mbps average speed. The UK average is less than 5 Mbps despite the fact it doesn’t have the geographical challenges of countries like the USA of Japan to contend with, and has a relatively small area to cover.

Compare these speeds to the minimum speed set out by the Digital Britain report of only 2 Mbps, and you can see why critics are concerned that the governments ‘minimum’ is far from acceptable for the next generation of broadband usage. Even if the report is implemented in the way it is intended, the UK will still find itself far behind many other developed countries when it comes to average broadband speeds.
Both Virgin and BT are pushing forward with plans to increase the coverage and speed of UK broadband. As the technology becomes cheaper, more consumers are likely to be attracted by the services offered from higher connections, such as HD video streaming. It will still be a long time before even 10 Mbps is an average speed, however.

“It’s a shame to see the UK lagging so far behind much of the developed world,” said ____, marketing director for UKCheapBroadband. “We’re looking forward to seeing some improvements in the next few years from the big name communication companies, but more will need to be done by the government if we are to remain competitive as a country in the digital marketplace.”

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