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The accelerated services will be offered under the BT ADSL Max and Max Premium brands from 31 March at more than 5,300 exchanges that serve 99.6 per cent of UK homes and businesses. The company estimates that around 78 per cent will be able to achieve speeds of 4Mbps while 42 per cent will be able to reach 6Mbps or more. Only properties located close to their local exchange will attain the highest speed.

The upgrades will also provide faster upstream speeds of up to 448kbps and 83kbps for the Premium service.

The ADSL broadband speed that can be supported on an individual line is dependent on a range of factors, including the length and gauge of the line from the exchange, the number and quality of joints, electromagnetic noise from other lines in a cable

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or wiring within a customer's premises, and the modems used.

BT is currently updating its broadband line checker so that it will show the expected top speed for each line. Upgrades will be handled by ISPs and will not be automatic. Broadband users will have to apply and BT has warned that the expected high level of demand may mean that it will take several months to carry out all the upgrades.

'Our approach in getting the most out of ADSL technology means we get higher speeds to a national footprint as quickly as possible - making sure the opportunities are not just restricted to the urban centres, nor those service providers who operate their own networks,' said BT Wholesale chief executive Paul Reynolds. 'It also provides service providers with the biggest potential market for applications and services demanding higher speeds.'

ADSL Guide notes that gamers should be aware that ISPs are provided with an interleave option which, if turned on, provides a faster and more reliable connection but at the expense of between 20 and 40ms of latency, the key factor for online game playing. If interleave is left off then the latency on the new services will be the same as it on current connections.