Currently in the UK, the majority of people have access to the Internet, but there is still a considerable amount of people who have only limited access or no access at all. While 99% of 16-24 year olds have used the Internet, the Office of National Statistics says that this drops to 40% of people aged over 65. 27% of people have no access at home. The UK also falls behind other countries in terms of connection speed. So what's the future for UK broadband?
Probably one of the biggest upcoming changes to UK broadband is massively increased speed, largely provided by the massive roll out of fiber optic broadband currently underway and led by providers such as BT and Virgin Media. Estimates suggest this could increase the speed by 50-60% within a year of the system going live as well as provider more extensive coverage. This will massively increase broadband speed - the average speed is currently 6.4Mbps, which is above the global average of 5.9Mbps and double what it was in 2008.
The UK also has commitments to European Union law in terms of improving its broadband coverage for the future. By 2013, it has to provide basic broadband coverage to all citizens, reversing the current trend where people in rural areas have much less access to the Internet than people living in towns and cities. It is also committed to providing 30Mbps broadband by 2020, although it is currently a couple of years behind on its work to meet these commitments.
An upgrade currently underway that will have a more immediate impact on the UK's broadband system is a BT-integrated project known as the 21st century network. It's called ADSL2+ and is a variant of the existing DSL. It offers speeds of up to 24Mbps although this won't be available everywhere as the signal can be affected by electromagnetic disturbances and depends on the distance people are from the exchanges. Every exchange is due to be enabled with ADSL2+ by 2011.
Over the coming years as coverage and connection speeds improve, the UK is, overall, expected to become much more reliant on broadband. Already, an increasing number of personal financial transactions are carried out online and businesses are heavy users of the Internet, something that seems set to continue. This is especially true as the government is considering making some services online-only, a massive step for the Internet. Increasing mobile broadband coverage also makes it easier to connect and, as Internet use increases, the system upgrades will be even more crucial.
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Article: What Does The Future Hold For Broadband In The United Kingdom? Author: Mark Walters Publication Date: 2011-01-10 Total Views: 213 Word Count: 425 Category:Home /
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