Businesses: British broadband not fast enough

 

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By Barry Collins

Posted on 7 Jul 2008 at 09:32

A third of British businesses don't think British broadband is fast enough to meet their needs, according to a new survey.

More than a third of British firms predict they'll need speeds of 100Mb/sec or greater to compete in the future, according to a study by the Communications Management Association (CMA), which was compiled in association with Ofcom and BT's Openreach division.

Yet, already a third are complaining that they don't have satisfactory access to today's internet.

The CMA - which represents British businesses' communications needs - says the Government needs to pull its finger out and create a national strategy for next-generation access (NGA).

"The gap between government rhetoric and formulation of policy appears to be as wide as ever," says David Harrington, the CMA's director of regulatory affairs. "Back in April last year, we warned there was a limited window of opportunity over the next 12‐24 months to develop and implement a concerted and innovative approach to regulation and policy making that would lead to a market‐led transition to next generation broadband.

"Fourteen months on, there is little sign of either a concerted or innovative approach to regulation and policy making, which the Government acknowledged as recently as last September as being necessary."

Broadband muddle

The CMA survey follows a similar report from the Broadband Stakeholder Group last month, which warned that British business could suffer if broadband speeds were not improved.

The report, however, advised Government and telcos to wait before investing in next-gen networks, as "there is still real uncertainty about the extent to which investors will be able to realise enough of this value to justify investment."

Yet, just last week Ofcom indicated that it would bend over backwards to accommodate BT, if the company decided to proceed with a nationwide fibre rollout.