Ofcom has this week confirmed that more than two thirds of UK homes now have a broadband connection offering an excellent base for the government’s Digital Britain programme. The Ofcom report shows that 68% of homes in the UK, as at March 2009, have access to the Internet which compares favourably against a figure of 58% just 12 months earlier.
However, one of the most startling developments is the average amount of time spent online by UK Internet users which has risen from just 9 minutes in 2004 to a substantial 25 minutes in 2009. The situation regarding mobile broadband is also improving with May 2009 alone seeing an extra 250,000 mobile broadband users introduced to the UK which again compares favourably to the corresponding period last year which saw an extra 139,000 users introduced.
As many experts predicted, mobile broadband is taking some time to take off in the UK and is predominately seen as a backup system for the more reliable and often quicker fixed line broadband connection. However, as mobile broadband technology continues to improve many feel that ultimately mobile broadband could become the broadband connection of choice in the UK over the next decade.