‘Go slow' broadband Britain

2008 has seen the broadband industry continue to flourish, with consumers now spending a colossal £2.7 billion a year to subscribe. Yet new research from uSwitch.com, among nearly 11,000 broadband customers, reveals that this is a hefty price to pay for a service that doesn't always deliver on its promises. 28% of broadband users - some 4.2 million - are not satisfied with the speed they receive from their provider and less than 1 in 10 (8%) of those subscribing to an ‘up to 8Mb' service can confirm that they actually receive the full 8Mb. Moreover, with just 42% of non-cable broadband lines able to receive 6Mb or above, 7 million consumers - nearly half of all broadband customers in the UK - are technically incapable of experiencing the standard headline speed of 8Mb.

After reliability of connection (60%), speed is one of the most important factors for 5.5 million consumers (58%) when it comes to choosing a broadband service - ahead of value for money (54%), customer service (12%) and technical support (12%). However, the reality is that the average broadband customer signs up to a headline speed of 8Mb but receives an average speed of 4Mb - 50% less.

Recent international rankings put the UK's broadband speed firmly into context: Japan boasts an average connection speed of 64Mb, Korea closely follows with 50Mb and even the French enjoy an average speed of 18Mb - over 4 times the speed of their British neighbours. Yet, with the size of a web page tripling over the last five years and the launch of new downloadable TV content such as the BBC iPlayer, the nation's need for speed is greater than ever before. In fact, nearly a third (30%) of consumers now watch TV or video over the internet.

The infrastructure of the country's broadband network is the key cause of ‘go slow' Britain. Due to the nature of the ‘copper wire' supplying non-cable (DSL) broadband to homes, the further customers live from a telephone exchange, the weaker the signal and the slower the speed.

Cable broadband, supplied via a fibre optic network, is not affected by this issue. Consequently, Virgin Media is set to launch a super-fast 50Mb broadband service later this year. However, while it guarantees that customers can connect at the advertised speed, the speed they actually experience depends on factors such as where customers are trying to connect to and their choice of home equipment. In addition, the company's ‘traffic management' policy slows heavy users down between 4pm and 9pm. While the policy is clearly outlined to customers, it has provided enough cause for the ASA to instruct Virgin Media to modify its advertising.

Last month, Ofcom published a voluntary Code of Practice, designed to improve the information available to consumers when they sign up to a new broadband service. The code has been welcomed by all major broadband companies. Some, such as Sky, TalkTalk and O2, already carry out a line test when a customer signs up to their broadband, to check the speed they are actually capable of receiving. O2 takes this a step further, performing a second check once the customer has signed up and downgrading their package if they cannot receive the advertised speed.

Ofcom Code of Practice

Steps that fixed-line ISPs arerequired to take under the voluntary Code include:

Providing customers at the point ofsale with an accurate estimate of the maximum speed that the line can support,whether it is in the shop, over the internet or on the phone;

Resolving technical issues toimprove speed and offering customers the choice to move onto a lower speedpackage when estimates given are inaccurate;

Ensuring all sales and promotionstaff have a proper understanding of the products they are selling so they canexplain to their customers the meaning of the estimates provided at the point ofsale; and

Providing consumers with informationon usage limits and alerting customers when they have breached them

Steve Weller, communications expert at uSwitch.com, comments: "British consumers have had enough of paying for services they do not receive. It's time for the Government to take hold of the reins, invest in upgrading the UK's broadband infrastructure and steer the UK back into the broadband race. We now have a clear cut case of ‘less chat, more action.'

"The new Ofcom Code of Practice could not have come soon enough for the 4 million broadband customers not satisfied with their broadband speed. We hope it will encourage more companies to follow the example of O2 to ensure that customers only pay for a speed that their line can support. However, as the Code is not mandatory, in the end it will only be as good as Ofcom's enforcement of it and the broadband companies' willingness to abide by it.

"In the meantime, no company will guarantee broadband service levels, but there are steps that consumers can take to ensure that they receive the speed that they are paying for. When signing up to a new service, they should ask the provider to run a line test to check what speed they are actually capable of receiving. Existing broadband connections can be checked at home - we recommend using a line checker such as BT Wholesale's ADSL checker at different times of the day, as speed can also depend on the number of people sharing the network at any one time. If customers are not satisfied, they should contact their broadband company to discuss their concerns and, where possible, downgrade."

uSwitch.com's tips for getting the fastest speed:

Use as short a lead as possible when connecting your modem to the main telephone socket

If possible use a LAN cable instead of wireless as this will give less interference and higher speeds

If you prefer a wireless connection, use a router either supplied or recommended by your broadband provider

Keep your broadband and phone cables away from power cables as this can cause interference

Check online forums on performance for broadband routers - different modem manufacturers can offer different speeds.