Topic: Britain 'failing' net speed tests.

[chorleydave]

A survey by consumer group Which? found that broadband packages promising speeds of up to 8Mbps (megabits per second) actually achieved far less.

Tests of 300 customers' net connections revealed that the average download speed they were getting was 2.7Mbps.

Which? has called on regulator Ofcom and Trading Standards to launch a fresh investigation into UK broadband.

Misleading ads

The speed tests were prompted by complaints from members of the public, unhappy with the speeds of their broadband connections.

In the last 12 months more internet service providers (ISPs) have offered services, promising speeds of up to 8Mbps.

The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) has investigated several cases of misleading promotions, most recently asking Bulldog to make it clear in its adverts that speed was dependent on how far away from the exchange people lived.

It ruled that broadband providers could use the words "up to" 8Mbps when describing services as long as customers were likely to get close to those speeds.

The average speed achieved in the Which? trials was 2.7Mbps, with the lowest coming in at under 0.09Mbps, barely at dial-up rates, and the maximum only reaching 6.7Mbps.

"It is shocking that internet service providers can advertise ever-increasing speeds that seem to bear little resemblance to what most people can achieve in reality," said which.co.uk editor Malcolm Coles.

"If it's unlikely that you'll reach the advertised speed it should be made clear up front, so that you know with some certainty what you're buying," he added.

Lack of demand?

Ofcom told the BBC News website that it was monitoring the situation.

"If we get increasing complaints we may look at what more can be done. We are working closely with the ASA and it is very important that consumers know what they are getting and what they are paying for," said an Ofcom spokeswoman.

According to a Which? survey, done in conjunction with the speed tests, only one in 10 of its members thought that a broadband service advertised as up to 8Mbps would actually deliver the top speed.

Tim Johnson from analyst firm Point Topic believes that people are generally resigned to the fact that they are not going to get super-fast broadband any time soon.

"There is currently small demand for 8Mbps and we are in the early days for things that need that kind of bandwidth. The fact is that video generally is not served at those speeds even if you could receive it," he said.

A BT spokesman confirmed that 8Mbps would be a rarity for users.

"Virtually no-one will get it. The laws of physics start applying as soon as it leaves the exchange and you would have to live on top of the exchange to get the full 8 megabits," he said.

BT is currently upgrading its exchanges as part of its 21st Century Network (21CN) programme. It will allow for broadband speeds of up to 24Mbps and will start to be made available from early 2008.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6924866.stm[/quote]

[Simon]

It's about time something was done about the extremely ambiguous "up to" terms used by broadband providers, which effectually allows them to advertise and charge for services which are impossible to be achieved.  How do we know that some ISPs are not throttling speeds down to save on bandwidth?  I'm not talking about FUPs for heavy users, I mean more generally.  If an ISP advertises "up to 8Mb", they are in no way promising that level of service, and could well be delivering far slower speeds, but legally, not putting a foot wrong.

[Clive]

Same story as Dave's but with a slightly different take on it:

Don't get free broadband.

A report from consumer watchdog Which? has concluded that 'free' broadband deals from ISPs such as Orange, Sky and TalkTalk should be avoided.

The report, which investigated issues such as customer satisfaction and whether connections speeds are as high as they claim they are, found that big-name ISPs were letting their customers down.

However, smaller ISPs such as Global Internet and Zen Internet were shortlisted for the Best Broadband Provider award won by Waitrose, which gives all profits it makes through its ISP business to charity.

Which? asked members to rate their satisfaction with their ISPs and found that only 20 per cent of Orange, Sky and TalkTalk said they were 'very satisfied'. The figure was 70 per cent for Global, Zen and Waitrose.

One of the biggest bones of contention was the speeds claimed by ISPs which can often be very different to those that customers receive. The research found that customers who had an 'up to' 8Mbps connection only got an average of 2.7Mpbs.

Malcolm Coles, editor of Which.co.uk, said: "It's shocking that internet service providers can advertise ever-increasing speeds that seem to bear little resemblance to what most people can achieve in reality.

"If it's unlikely you'll reach the advertised speed it should be made clear up front, so that you know with some certainty what you're buying," he said.

Coles also recommended reporting ISPs to industry watchdog Ofcom if they didn't deliver on their promises.

"If you think what you're getting differs vastly from what you've paid for, speak to your provider ? or if they won't help, report them to Ofcom."

The report comes after price comparison service uSwitch.com told ISPs to stop making promises they couldn't keep and to start delivering a better service.

A separate study by moneysupermarket.com found that just 20 per cent of people were getting broadband at the speed they were signed up to.

Michael Phillips of Broadbandchoices.co.uk echoed Which?'s criticisms, and called for consumers to be more aware of the difference between the speed they have been promised and the speed they receive.

"Factors like distance from the exchange and poor quality wiring degrade the broadband connection and reduce the customer's speed but many people are unaware of this and go for the top packages thinking they will get broadband at 8Mbps.

"We need transparency from providers on the kind of speeds customers can actually expect to get, rather than flashy advertising and ever increasing 'top speeds'," he added.

Which? surveyed 14,642 of its members and carried out 300 speed tests with 27 different ISPs in compiling the research.

www.which.co.uk