Broadband speeds should be made crystal clear

Matthew Wheeler, communications expert at uSwitch.com, comments on today's announcement that Ofcom is set to improve its code of practice on broadband speed: "It's deeply concerning that, in Ofcom's mystery shop, 3 out of 4 customers were not informed that their actual speed was likely to fall short of the advertised speed. We are disappointed that that Ofcom has to play such a heavy hand with broadband providers on this issue.

"Aside from a reliable connection, speed is the most important factor for consumers when signing up to a broadband service and a key driver in broadband satisfaction. Our own research has found that a quarter of customers have broadband speeds of 4Mb or less and 45% are not happy with their speed.

"It's time for broadband companies to be more transparent at the point of sale. It should be made crystal clear that the headline speed that a customer signs up to does not necessarily represent the actual speed they receive. The harder the line that Ofcom takes on this, the better."