Broadband is our right, say UK consumers

Broadband: Can't live without it

More than 80 per cent of UK consumers believe it is everyone’s right to be able to have broadband access at home, according to research.

And nearly three-quarters of home broadband users now say they could not live without the service, says the survey by influential advisory group the Communications Consumer Panel.

Already more than half of broadband users are accessing web-based entertainment, such as TV downloads, while 71 per cent use transactional services such as online banking, says the study.

The Panel’s report, Not online, not included: consumers say broadband essential for all, has been produced as part of the process leading to the imminent release of the government’s final Digital Britain plan.

Communications Consumer Panel chairwoman Anna Bradley said the research demonstrates the case for a universal broadband service commitment.

“The tipping point will be when broadband does not just provide an advantage to people who have it, but disadvantages people who do not. Interestingly some people already feel disadvantaged: those who live in not-spots and those who have school-age children but do not have broadband at home,” she said.

The draft Digital Britain report proposed a UK-wide plan to offer broadband via fixed or mobile links at 2Mbit/s, but Bradley said this speed may not be enough in the long term.

“Government must make it clear what services and activities people will and will not be able to carry out with a download speed of 2Mbit/s – and will need to keep this under review so that it does not become outmoded,” she said.

A universal broadband service would have major economic benefits, added Bradley.

“There is an expectation in our research that in the future more services will be delivered solely online or provided offline in a way that penalises people who access them in this way, and that not having broadband at home will mean reduced options, opportunities and financial penalties,” she said.

“These findings make it even more vital for government and industry to help consumers to get online and reap the benefits.”