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UK Broadband could lag behind competitors

The government’s broadband advisory group has issued a report on the challenges faced by the UK for next generation broadband.

The Broadband Stakeholder Group (BSG) has said that the UK must resolve the issues surrounding deployment of next generation broadband services.  The main issue is that the consumers are requiring more and more bandwidth for applications such as TV viewing over the internet and IPTV services.

The current broadband infrastructure may not be adequate to meet the needs of consumers and the content providers.  In addition, competitor nations are now deploying networks capable of meeting the needs of the next generation of broadband users, according to the group.

There is also concern that there is not enough incentive for further investment into fast speed next generation broadband networks.  Operators are unable to justify the multi-billion pound investment at present.

Kip Meek, BSG Chairman commented:

“Broadband is key to the UK economy and has a critical impact on many people’s daily lives. We have a limited window of opportunity: if steps are not taken now to prepare for next generation broadband, then we may well find ourselves in a position where it is too late to catch up.

This is not special pleading on the behalf of broadband providers, but a call to policy makers and regulators, as well as to the commercial participants in the industry to put significant effort into understanding the dynamics of the market. Failure to act on the issue of next generation broadband will be to the detriment of both our economy and our society.”

Fibre technologies such as Fibre To The Home (FTTH) could meet this need.  However, operators such as BT have already said that its investment in its new 21CN next generation network has impacted on its investment in FTTH. 

Its 21CN network promises speeds up to 24Mbps.  However, BT admits that most consumers experienced around 8 – 12 Mbps in trials.  This is due to technical limitations such as distance to a telephone exchange.

Neil Rogers, 21CN managing director recently said:  “It’s something always under discussion.  The more investment there is in 21CN, the likelihood of the debate resurfacing diminishes.”

Matt Beal, CTO of BT Wholesale also commented:

“You have to be ready to pay for that investment. My shareholders are not a charity. It isn’t a regulation issue, it’s a market issue – if no one wants to pay for [high definition video] streams they’re not going to magic themselves into people’s homes.”