Planet broadband: Population 300 million

Broadband is now being piped to some 300 million people around the globe. And although the US is still the fat pipe king of the world, China is closing the gap.

According to research company Point Topic, there were 298 million broadband subscribers globally as of the end of March 2007 - meaning that figure is likely to have exceeded the 300 million mark by now.

The country data shows the US is still top dog for fast web access - with 60.4 million lines as of the end of March. But China is gaining ground and has reduced the gap by more than a million subscribers since the end of 2006, hitting 56 million lines.

France was the country with the highest percentage growth rate in subscriber numbers - at nearly 10 per cent - taking it to fifth place in the top 10 fat pipe nations, with 15.3 million lines.

In third place, behind the US and China, is Japan (26.5 million subscribers), with Germany in fourth (16 million). The UK is just lagging South Korea, with almost 14 million lines.

Swindon has been the top town for broadband in the UK since December 2005, with nearly two-thirds of its homes hooked up.