Despite the increasing adoption of broadband, the “Digital Divide” in the UK between the haves and have-nots is deeper than first thought.
According to the latest figures from Point Topic, household density in terms of penetration is highest in prosperous suburban areas, with business use driving the total up higher in areas such as Westminster and Tower Hamlets.
The top ten broadband areas range from 25 broadband lines per 100 people in Wandsworth, London, to 20 in South Buckinghamshire. Low-density areas include Dumfries and Galloway, with 6.3 lines per 100 down to 4.9 lines in Eilean Star, in the Western Isles.
Point Topic reveals that all the top ten local authority areas with the highest broadband density are in London and the home counties, while the ten with the lowest are in the rural areas of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.
The publication of digital subscriber line (DSL) numbers for different regions from BT has shown that there are big differences in density between various parts of the country, which are independent of social factors or cable competition.
The figures show that rural areas often have lower density than the suburbs, even where broadband is equally available, with some parts of the country, notably Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the North-east of England, seeming to have less interest in the internet than others.
Point Topic claims that in light of the recent research there is a long way to go to achieve the government’s goal for internet access for all.
Earlier this year Point Topic revealed that the UK had overtaken France as the largest broadband country in Europe, with the latest estimates from Point Topic suggesting that the UK will have 9.8 million broadband lines by New Year’s Day 2006, compared to France with 9.7 million (see UK Overtakes France As Largest European Broadband Country).
Looking towards 2006, Point Topic claims that major changes in the UK broadband environment should help to drive growth forward in 2006.
Changes include the development of processes enabling bulk migration of existing DSL customers to “unbundled” telephone lines, as well as the creation of BT’s Openreach programme, offering broadband access to all service providers on equal terms.
Until now, the UK has lagged behind other countries in the unbundling of telephone lines, however, due to advances in technology, Point Topic predict large internet service providers (ISPs) to start moving customers onto their unbundled equipment on a massive scale.
Related Links
