UK broadband - slow but plentiful

The UK is known for offering plentiful but slow broadband services, according to recent analyst reports.

Three-quarters of UK households will be connected to the net via broadband by 2011, JupiterResearch predicts.

But the UK is lagging behind its European contemporaries in fat-pipe speeds. Though broadband services in Blighty advertise speeds of up to 24Mbps, customers typically experience only 8Mbps - slower than many offerings on the continent.

Ian Fogg, senior analyst at JupiterResearch, said one reason for slow broadband here is customers' phone lines being of poor quality. "The ability for UK users to contribute to the internet isn't as good as the rest of Europe at the moment," he told silicon.com.

The UK is ramping up higher-speed broadband services. O2, for instance, recently bought ISP Be, which sells next-generation ADSL2+ broadband, capable of providing speeds of up to 24Mbps.

And, on the upside, figures from analyst Point Topic at the start of the year said the UK is Europe's largest broadband market.

Fogg agreed the UK has both broadband strengths and weaknesses. "Britain is good at availability, competition and pricing but not speed," he said.