ISPreview Study Finds UK People Demand More Public Broadband Investment

London, United Kingdom, April 10, 2013 --(PR.com)-- A new web-based poll conducted with 1045 Internet users in the United Kingdom has claimed that 81% of respondents want the government to put more public funding into rolling out faster broadband internet connectivity (up from 69% when the same question was asked in 2011). In addition 62.5% said they would like the effort to focus on connecting the most remote rural areas first.

The survey also asked whether or not the country should set an improved national minimum broadband speed target. The government's current 'Universal Service Commitment' is for internet download speeds that deliver at least 2Mbps (Megabits per second), which must reach everybody by the end of 2015, but only 2.8% of respondents supported this.

Question - What should the national minimum broadband speed target for 100% of the UK be set at?

25Mbps+ - 31.5%
10Mbps+ - 27.5%
100Mbps+ - 25.5%
5Mbps+ - 8.8%
Do not define by speed - 3.6%
2Mbps+ (current policy) - 2.8%

"It's no surprise to find that most people would like to see the country set its minimum broadband speed target at a level that is significantly above today’s 2Mbps mark," said ISPreview.co.uk's Founder, Mark Jackson. "Unfortunately it's perhaps not realistic, short of an extra multi-billion pound investment from the public purse, to expect some of the more dramatic speeds (e.g. 100Mbps+).

"Never the less it's already clear that a minimum speed of 2Mbps is fast becoming the modern day equivalent of a dialup connection and will soon struggle to handle the latest content. Ofcom (telecoms regulator) recently suggested that a minimum of 8-10Mbps might be more appropriate, before adding that even this was 'unlikely' to be sufficient come 2020."

"In our view it should have been set at 10Mbps from the very start, so as to encourage the correct level of investment, technology choice and to better account for future needs," concluded Jackson.