Broadband: Our Survey Said...

A recent survey – carried out by a popular broadband advice site - focused on what consumers may want from a next-generation broadband connection. The results showed that net users identified the ability to download high-quality films as quickly as possible as the service that they want most out of next-generation broadband services.

Over 61% of those surveyed rated downloading DVD-quality films as the service that would be considered the most interesting when it came to next-generation broadband. Some 18% of users said they downloaded films, although it was the area of online activity that had the least time dedicated to it.


Of those questioned in the survey, a number of services that would be welcomed as a result of next-generation broadband were identified as a result, including:

Downloading DVD-quality films in 5 minutes
Downloading HDTV programmes on demand
Video conferencing with friends and family using VoIP software
Home surveillance via broadband
High definition gaming services

The survey comes about at a time when the future of broadband in the UK is still very much under discussion, with a summit on the subject taking place recently to discuss the issues of getting the UK broadband up to speed with the rest of the world.

In countries like South Korea, around 90% of homes can get cheap broadband connections between 50 and 100Mbps, with online gaming providing one of the biggest drives for such a service. It is unlikely that gaming could drive the UK broadband market, although the services identified in the survey could help drive the demand for faster broadband.

Unusually, the applications that attracted the most interest in the idea of next-generation broadband were also identified as those that had the least online time spent on them. It is hoped that the demand for high-definition television and video will drive services in the UK broadband market, helping to justify the need to upgrade existing networks and install new fibre networks – capable of delivering speeds of up to 100Mbps.

There is uncertainty, however, as to the cost of rolling out such a service, along with the issue of pricing – with 60% responding either ‘no' or ‘don't know' when asked about paying for such services.