News about the Government’s proposed plan to tax each and every household with a phone line in order to raise money for the development of cheap cable broadband and high speed mobile broadband connections in the future has been circulating for some time. However, as more details become available, will the average family actually benefit from the tax, or is there a better way in which to invest in our future?

According to official reports, a monthly charge of 50p will be added to every home phone bill in the UK, totalling an extra £6 a year for those affected. However, analysis of the new rules to be enforced by Revenue and Customs actually suggests that for millions of people this charge could be significantly higher.

VAT will be charged on top of the flat tax rate, which in itself will increase the cost by 17.6 percent when VAT is restored to its original level on 1st January 2010. According to a leaked document this will mean an extra £30 million a year will find its way into the public purse as the tax itself becomes subject to taxation.

In addition, it seems that the charge will not be levied against individual homes, but will rather be based on the number of lines connected to any one property. As such a home with two phone lines rather than one will be charged £6 a year for each line, plus VAT.

This means that people with cheap cable broadband connections using fibre optic technology who also have a copper BT landline will be charged for both connections, even if they only use the fibre optic line for broadband.

The problem could be more severe for businesses and the CBI has called for a detailed breakdown as to how the tax will affect enterprises with multiple landline connections.

Despite the recent announcement of the merger deal that will see Orange and T-Mobile become the largest single mobile broadband provider in the UK, the feelings of unity are not spreading to the rest of the providers, as the newly joined firms are refusing to share their portion of the radio spectrum.

Industry regulators Ofcom are likely to demand an explanation for the decision by Orange and T-Mobile, which will shut out the other major providers from over half of the available radio spectrum over which services including mobile broadband and cellular networking are provided.

Recent investigations into radio spectrum allocation carried out by an independent research firm advised capping the amount a single organisation could own and if the merger goes ahead then Orange and T-Mobile would be in serious breach of these recommendations.

There were some hopes that over the next year, all of the major mobile broadband providers would share their radio spectrum, allowing people with Vodafone mobile broadband USB dongles to benefit from improved coverage as part of industry-wide cooperation. This spirit of sharing has been somewhat dampened by recent events.

Although the merger of Orange and T-Mobile, which would give them close to a 40% stake in the mobile broadband market, was initially going to be subject to a competition review, it seems that murmurings from the Office of Fair Trading suggest independent investigations into the merger have been put on hold. This is likely to result in the formation of the new provider occurring far quicker than was previously thought.

Industry observers are fairly sceptical that any industry wrangling which takes place before the general election in 2010 will actually have any lasting effect. Changes in legislation are inevitable no matter which party comes to power, although the stubborn behaviour of all providers could sour relationships in the future.

Despite the evolution of multiple forms of online communication which improve upon the principally text-based capabilities of emails, a leading business broadband expert has predicted that emails will continue to form the backbone of commerce over the next decade.

This news comes after a report from broadband provider TalkTalk suggested that email usage was taking a downturn that would eventually relegate it to the annals of history.

Mickael Remond, CEO of a major messaging solutions firm, cited the universal availability and versatility of email as key to its continued use.

Remond was adamant that email would continue to be important to business broadband users because of its ability to target multiple recipients and provide a proven logging system to allow easy reference to older messages.

Although the TalkTalk survey revealed that 51% of low level businesspeople used email as their main form of communication, in ten years time the shape of online interaction would be very different.

Social networking and instant messaging are slated as being the next big thing in business by the report and so the adoption of BT business broadband packages to reflect this change could result in very different tariffs and functions in the future.

However, this is obviously a point open to debate and as email is so deeply entrenched in most businesses it could still be used as a formal and lasting form of communication, whilst social networking and instant messaging represents quick, casual and disposable means of conducting a business dialogue.

Whether future BT business broadband packages will include facilities for business social networks or intercompany instant messaging remains to be seen, but the continued importance of broadband itself within the business world is assured.

O2 has been slow to improve the levels of 3G coverage that it can offer to its UK customers, with its current coverage levels of 84% putting it at the bottom of the pile when contrasted with other UK providers.

After recent studies identified Orange as the provider of some of the cheapest mobile broadband in the UK, as well as boasting 93% 3G coverage and a very satisfied customer base, other networks have had to react fast in order to save face.

O2 has therefore announced that it will be investing significant sums into expanding the reach of its 3G networks, with a total of more than 1500 new 3G base stations being built or converted to utilise the new technology.

It is not clear just how many new masts will go up around the UK, but converting existing 2G masts to 3G will certainly provide better coverage in the most underdeveloped areas.

London will of course be a focal point of the investment, with a total of 200 new base stations becoming active over the next year and a proposed group of 40 authorised for an update by Christmas 2009.

O2 has been famously nonchalant in its approach to 3G coverage up to this point and it was subject to threats of a potential fine back in 2008 when Ofcom reported that it was not adhering to the coverage levels dictated by its 3G licence.

According to O2 officials, the company did not fully appreciate the level of public demand relating to mobile broadband. It has therefore been focusing on its home broadband service, which has resulted in O2 becoming one of the most popular fixed line providers in the country.

Those looking for the cheapest mobile broadband in the UK could find their options greatly improved as a result of the increased competition offered by O2’s wider 3G coverage.

Since it is already widely known that around £1 in every £7 spent in the UK goes into the tills at Tesco, it is no surprise that the retail giant is looking at winning a share of the home broadband market. Tesco has had success as the provider of mobile telephone services for several years now and recently expanded its portfolio of products with the addition of mobile broadband, but it is clear that there is more to come.

Having opened the doors to mobile broadband customers a year ago it has offered many competitive deals and began giving away free laptops with its longer contracts in mid 2009. Now Tesco will be adding its name and branding to home broadband in what could be an extremely lucrative step for the company if it is handled correctly.

As with its mobile phone and mobile broadband services, Tesco will be piggybacking on the networks and infrastructure of another firm in order to offer home broadband to customers. In this instance it is Cable and Wireless who will supply the service, putting Tesco in direct competition with the many BT broadband deals that are currently available.

Tesco is allegedly hoping to take advantage of the market sentiment highlighted in recent surveys in which significant customer grievances appear to be associated with many of the mainstream home broadband providers. With many customers looking to switch from their existing providers to greener pastures, there is a real chance for Tesco to tap into a disgruntled market that seems to be in need of a change as well as a good deal or two on home broadband.

The addition of Tesco home broadband to the marketplace can only be a good thing. The price of BT broadband deals should fall across the board if Tesco adopts its usual aggressive pricing strategies.

Jeremy Hunt, shadow secretary for the Conservative party, caused a stir when speaking at the London School of Economics earlier in the week. The senior Tory politician revealed that a Conservative government would focus public investment in providing cheap cable broadband and faster ADSL connections to the major cities of the UK.

The news was greeted with understandable frustration by those living in rural areas where broadband coverage is poor and broadband speeds are a fraction of those available to people living in densely populated areas.

Commentators have recognised that the strategy could be aimed at winning votes amongst those living and working in cities where broadband is seen as integral to economic growth.

It is possible that this strategy, which deviates from current government plans looking for dual investment from taxpayers’ money and the telecoms industry, could eventually work in favour of those living in rural areas. The Conservatives would charge those adopting the high speed connection in the cities a higher monthly rate in order to, later, allow for increased investment in better broadband speeds and coverage around the UK.

It is likely that such a plan would be greeted with significant support from businesses, allowing them to implement home working schemes for staff during adverse weather or pandemics such as the ongoing Swine Flu outbreak.

For residential customers living in urban areas, the impact could be less desirable. With the new faster connections costing more, an imbalance of broadband speeds could be driven by income, with the universal availability of cheap cable broadband a distant dream.

Although the Conservative plans for the future of broadband in the UK are of interest to many, speculation and the discussion of specific plans are seen to be pointless at this time. It is only after next year’s general election that the any new policies will be implemented.

Wednesday saw the Queen’s speech used as a platform from which the Government could announce various new pieces of legislation. The most important news for broadband users was the announcement of the Digital Economy Bill, which will change the rules relating to illegal file-sharing and online piracy.

Those who download illegally will first be contacted and urged to cease and desist. If they ignore the warnings, they could have their connections limited as pressure is put on internet service providers to take the issues of file sharing more seriously.

The most persistent offenders could face having their internet connections disabled altogether, resulting in a system that would effectively ban those who do not respect copyright laws. The UK music industry has welcomed the plans, but lobbyists who campaign for information freedom in the digital age believe that the new rules could penalise people unnecessarily.

The new bill is also set to further establish plans for the growth of a high-speed broadband network across the UK. On Monday, the Digital Britain minister Stephen Timms told a broadband conference in Leeds that there was a governmental commitment to get the next generation of broadband connectivity into over 90% of UK households within the next 8 years. BT broadband deals which offer 20Mbps connections are representative of the first wave of this new, faster broadband infrastructure.

In order to pay for the BT broadband deals of the future the 50p broadband tax, levied against phone bills for UK customers, is still going ahead. This will further supplement the £170 million that is being injected into the industry in order to achieve universal broadband coverage by 2012.

Although an increasing number of providers are gradually offering 20Mbps connections, further telephone exchanges need to be converted to the new technology to enable a greater number of UK residents to connect at high speeds in the future.

Consumers around the country are constantly hunting for the cheapest mobile broadband in the UK. In many cases this involves using price comparison sites to size up the various deals. Prices will vary according to the volume of data a customer anticipates using every month and in most cases these limits must be strictly observed in order to avoid paying extra.

As you may expect, there is industry pressure to alter the way in which consumers pay for their mobile broadband usage as usage levels and user numbers continue to grow, placing ever greater pressure on the available bandwidth. Falling prices also mean that companies are having to handle a 400% rise in mobile broadband use, offset only marginally by a meagre 40% rise in real revenues.

News from a recent study by Camiant showed that consumers and the networks are in agreement about one thing: the structure of mobile broadband price plans is in need of a serious rethink. It is clear from the study that consumers could be faced with ever stricter data limit enforcement, resulting in significant penalties for exceeding their allowance and as such a different approach, such as connection management, would be preferable.

The survey also revealed that consumers across Europe are actually unsure as to the rules and restrictions of their existing mobile broadband price plans, with data caps confusing many and ignored by even more. As such, a price structure which restricts mobile broadband speeds during peak periods but has a relaxed approach to overall data allowance would be seen to be the best solution to everyone’s problems.

It was also revealed that consumers would encourage networks to offer unlimited usage for a single mobile broadband function, for example gaming or downloading, whilst retaining the data cap for other applications. It is clear that flexibility and customisation are going to be integral to delivering the cheapest mobile broadband in the UK in years to come.

Be Broadband has extended its half price broadband offer on its entry level home broadband package. The extension is welcome but will expire on 28 December so users looking for a cheap broadband deal need to sign up quickly. A voucher code – ‘halfprice’ needs to be used when applying for the Be Value package and cuts the price from £13.50/month to just £6.75/month – this is a saving of £81 per year. You can find more about the offer here – Be Broadband Half Price Deal.

The Be Broadband Value package gives a connection speed of 8Mb and unlimited monthly usage. Also included is a free wireless router and free customer support at any time (Be has won awards for its customer service!).

Simple Broadband’s Communications Manager, Simon Gerrard said: “Be Broadband offers some great packages for the home broadband user and, with money tight for many people given the current economic situation, extending this half price broadband offer is likely to be very successful.”

Wireless broadband prices are falling across the board and mobile broadband is becoming ever more popular, despite criticisms levelled at download speeds and levels of 3G network coverage. The news that Mac owners are having issues with compatibility has therefore come as a something of a shock to the industry.

Last week it was revealed that Mac owners who had upgraded to the Snow Leopard operating system were experiencing serious issues if they tried to use their mobile broadband dongles with the new software. In most cases this rendered their mobile broadband connection inaccessible. The networks responded with various levels of concern to these issues.

In the event that your mobile broadband service ceases to work because of a software issue, the Office of Fair Trading has come out in support of Mac owners with several useful pieces of advice. It is legally assured that consumers should not only receive products which perform correctly, but more importantly that they perform in the way in which they were advertised.

Mac owners with Snow Leopard whose mobile broadband dongle does not work are entitled to an explanation and assistance from the network and are advised to contact the Citizen’s Advice Bureau if this is not forthcoming. If your mobile broadband dongle was explicitly advertised as Mac-compatible then you have even more weight behind your complaint.

Most networks have now released fixes for the issue, although some are considered to be more difficult to perform than others and networks offering mobile broadband continue to advertise their dongles as compatible with Macs despite the persistent evidence to the contrary. Low wireless broadband prices may not be enough to quell public anger.

The OFT advises consumers to complain if they are unhappy with any form of broadband connection and problems which place the provider in violation of the terms of a broadband contract could well be grounds enough for you to legally cancel your contract before the minimum term.