Broadband News

Average broadband speeds dip in August

Tuesday, 07 September 2010

By Garnet Roach garnet@consumerchoices.co.uk

Average broadband speeds across the UK stood at 4.9Mb last month - a slight drop from the July high of over 5Mb.

Virgin Media (www.Virginmedia.com) also saw a small drop in average download speeds throughout August, falling from 10Mb to 9.6Mb - though its cable network allows it to stay far ahead of competitors.

O2 broadband (www.O2.co.uk) and BE broadband (www.Bethere.co.uk), which share a network, took joint second with average download speeds of 5.8Mb, while TalkTalk broadband (www.Talktalk.co.uk) held onto its third place position with an average of 4.2Mb.

But the gap between off-peak speeds and download speeds at the busiest times actually got smaller, with just a 0.8Mb difference.

Overnight speeds averaged 5.5Mb during August, but speeds dipped to 4.7Mb between 6pm and midnight.

Michael Phillips, Broadbandchoices.co.uk product director, said: “Virgin Media consistently holds the top spot when it comes to broadband speeds, using its cable network to deliver speeds of up to 10Mb, 20Mb and even 50Mb broadband.

“But O2 and BE have also proved themselves as fast, reliable broadband providers, topping the list of copper wire ADSL providers time and again.

“Broadband speeds vary depending on the provider you choose and - if you're an ADSL customer - your distance from the local telephone exchange,” added Phillips. “Compare broadband providers in your area to find the fastest packages,” he concluded.

Source: Broadband.co.uk

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