Ofcom slams ISPs for exaggerated broadband speed claims

New code of practice for ISPs planned by the regulator

Ofcom has criticised broadband advertising and is planning a code of practice

Ofcom unveiled what it claims is the UK's most comprehensive research into broadband speeds today, showing an increasing gap between ISPs' claimed speeds and those actually delivered.

Even though the average residential broadband speed delivered increased more than 25 per cent in the past year from 4.1Mbit/s to 5.2Mbit/s (26.8 per cent), the advertised average rose from 7.1Mbit/s to 11.5Mbit/s (61.8 per cent), the research revealed.

Ovum senior analyst Matthew Howett said that Ofcom's research "paints an interesting picture".

"On the face of it there is good news: average broadband speeds are increasing. The worrying thing is that the gap is widening between what is advertised and what people get in reality," he said.

Ofcom said: "ISPs need to do more to ensure they are giving their customers sufficient information."

Such information about the services they provide and the factors that may affect the actual speed they will receive needs to be clear and accurate.

To combat ISP sleight of hand, Ofcom plans to get ISPs to sign up to a new code of practice, so that customers get more information about the performance they can expect.

The code is scheduled to go live in the next 12 months, and will require all ISPs to sign up.

Ofcom also said it was in consultation with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on how ISPs advertise their services, which is important as ISPs are increasingly offering and moving their customers to higher-speed broadband packages.

The Committee on Advertising Practice, a body administered by the ASA, is also conducting a review looking at how broadband is marketed, which Ofcom says may lead to new advertising guidelines.

Ovum's Howett said that marketing standards in the telecoms sector could be tightened.

"'Up to' broadband speeds are not unlike 'unlimited' data tariffs. Rarely do they reflect reality," said Howett.

Ofcom already has a consumer guide to broadband speeds and a guide to help consumers when choosing a broadband deal available on its web site.

Mobile broadband, broadband delivered by cellular mobile network operators, was excluded from this research.

However, the comms regulator has commissioned separate research into mobile broadband performance, with the results scheduled to be published in early 2011