The UK has a problem with broadband speed – more than a million UK homes are unable to get connected with sufficient speeds to run everyday online tasks such as video streaming and conference calling, according to new findings from Ofcom, the independent regulator of the UK’s communication industry.
The industry watchdog has revealed that 1.4 million properties, which equates to 5% of all UK homes, don’t have access to broadband with speeds over 10 megabits per second (Mbps).
And although this represents a drop of almost half (42%) in the number of homes without access to fast broadband – Ofcom’s 2015 report found 2.4 million homes were unable to access 10Mbps broadband – it’s still a cause for concern for the government’s broadband targets.
The UK’s broadband delivery
The UK government has set some very definite targets when it comes to broadband provision, and set up Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK), which is part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), to help implement its policy on superfast broadband roll-out, which it set in three stages:
- Provide superfast broadband coverage to 90% of UK premises by early 2016 and access to basic broadband (2Mbps) for all from December 2015 – “Phase 1”
- Provide superfast broadband coverage to 95% of UK premises by the end of 2017 – “Phase 2”
- Explore options to provide superfast coverage to the hardest to reach parts of the UK – “the final 5%” The BDUK coverage targets include the commercial roll-out, however, the BDUK programme and funding
The BDUK coverage targets include the commercial roll-out, however, the BDUK programme and funding is focussed on those areas that are not reached by the commercial roll-out.
The target for ‘Phase 1’ was met on April 7, 2016, according to figures from broadband comparison website, thinkbroadband, and ‘Phase 2’ is now underway, focussing on providing superfast broadband coverage for the “final 5%” of UK premises.
The remaining unserved premises (estimated at 1.5 million) are geographically dispersed across the landmass of the UK. In the Queen’s Speech on 18 May 2016 the Government announced its intention to legislate for a broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) in the upcoming Digital Economy Bill.
A USO would introduce a legal right to request a broadband connection from a provider at a minimum speed, currently expected to be 10Mbps. The Government intends for the USO to be in place by 2020 at the latest – so some households could be waiting another three years before they have sufficient broadband speeds to stream television and movies.
And if you work from home and run several devices from your router, you’ll need sufficient bandwidth to make sure there’s no interruption to your service that could interfere with your daily business.
The cost of fast broadband
A good broadband connection is a must for modern life, as the digital and culture minister, Matt Hancock, acknowledged: “High speed broadband and good mobile connectivity are no longer a nice to have but a modern necessity and we will not rest until they are delivered.”
But it’s clear that too many households and businesses are still struggling for sufficient broadband speeds, and while good progress is being made, getting the final part of Phase 2 across the line could prove costly for customer – the Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA), which represents companies including BT, Virgin Media and Sky, has warned that, based on Ofcom research, it could cost up to £1.1bn to enable faster speed services to reach all households, which could see household bills rise by £20.
What are the broadband speeds like in your area? Do you struggle to reach the speeds you need? Let us know.
