27 February 2007
Broadband connection speeds are around four times faster than in 2003, but the majority of British consumers are still not getting the benefit of high speed internet, according to figures from the independent broadband information site thinkbroadband.com.
The average UK internet speed is just over 2Mbs, reports the website, but many broadband providers profess to be able to provide speeds of up to 8Mbs, depending on the time of day, how many people are using the service and how close the consumer is from an exchange.
Andrew Ferguson, editor of thinkbroadband.com, has called for providers to be more transparent with their broadband speed promises, since customers are often unaware of the inconsistency of ADSL speeds.
He also warned that the impending introduction of internet protocol TV would result in even slower connection speeds as the current structures are not prepared for millions of users to access the servers at any one time.
"A provider only needs around 1.5% of users to make use of, say, the BT Vision product at the same time to use up all the capacity," he told silicon.com.
"The UK does not yet have the infrastructure to support millions watching EastEnders via broadband at the same time."
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