Broadband Quality Regulation: Perspectives from UK Users

Abstract

Broadband is a technology still penetrating the telecommunication market and is seen as the most significant evolutionary step since the emergence of the Internet. However we argue that in the rush to achieve market share, insufficient attention has been paid to quality issues, the central theme of this chapter. Indeed, the concept of quality is a multi-faceted one, for which various perspectives can be distinguished. In this chapter, we take a look at broadband quality as perceived by users in the UK and report the result of a survey, which determined the users’ perception on broadband quality. The results of the survey show, that quality, though desired by many, has been short-changed by the desire to have access to the Internet via broadband at the lowest cost possible. However, this has not encouraged some consumers to take on broadband access despite some low prices offered by service providers as these low prices for broadband access is not commensurate to their needs.