Broadband News

The Diminishing Digital Divide

(01-06-07) - Gaps in the take-up of digital services that have been dividing the UK nations and regions are closing according to new research by Ofcom.

This is the second year that Ofcom has carried out the research, comparing availability, take-up and consumption of broadband and digital TV in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as looking at statistics for rural and urban areas.

Comparing the number of adults with broadband at home in 2005 they found a significant 12 per cent gap between Northern Ireland (N.I.), who had the lowest at only 24 per cent, and England who had the highest at 36 per cent.

But availability and take-up have massively increased in the past year, and with the introduction of services such as LLU in N.I., the gap has been closed to only three per cent. By last year 45 per cent of adults in England had broadband at home, with 42 per cent for N.I, as well as Scotland and Wales.

In 2005 Ofcom found that although internet take-up was higher in rural areas, broadband penetration was lower than average. However, by last year there was only a four per cent difference in broadband usage with 45 per cent of households in urban areas with high-speed internet connections compared to 41 per cent in rural areas.

Ofcom Chief Executive Ed Richards welcomed the findings and said: “The geographic gap between the digital haves and have-nots in the UK has been gradually narrowing” but added, “we need to do more to ensure that everyone is able to benefit from the economic and social benefits modern communications offer”.