The changes that are currently afoot in the home broadband market are set to alter the face of the industry as we know it. Whilst it appears that landline customers are going to experience a rise in the cost of their services, people who opt for bundle deals will be getting a better price for their connections.

Starting in April, BT is altering the definitions of off-peak for its inclusive call package users, moving the start time in the evenings from 6pm to 7pm. However, according to a report from Simplydigital.co.uk there is a chance that BT broadband deals will be getting cheaper after O2 launches its own home broadband and phone service bundle, undercutting rivals on price.

O2 is going to combine the price of line rental and broadband into a one-off payment that will cost customers £17 each month on a 12 month contract. Considering that Virgin Media is putting up the cost of its line rental, people who had given up on ADSL broadband and moved to cable could well be switching back to save cash.

Not every consumer will be looking for value above all else in their home broadband packages and speed has recently proven to be an increasingly important factor as fibre optic broadband connections become more widely available.

In 2010 it seems as if there is a push within the telecoms industry to encourage consumers to put all of their eggs into one basket and sign on for multiple services from the same firm. Since the majority of broadband customers also require home phone and digital television in some form, it makes sense to save money and commit to a package.

Simple Broadband’s Communications Manager Simon Gerrard said “It is advisable to save money by opting for BT broadband deals with multiple services bundled together, although price comparison is more important than ever.”

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has revealed statistics which place the UK in the bottom third of a list of global nations in terms of average broadband connection speeds.

The UK ranked just 21st out of the list of the world’s 30 most developed nations in terms of broadband speeds and infrastructure, which means fellow EU states including Spain, Greece and Portugal are higher placed.

The OECD said that the results proved that investment in fibre optic technology was key to improving average broadband speeds. Although the UK is ranked 13th in the list when the level of broadband penetration is considered, a majority of UK customers take advantage of BT broadband deals that utilise ADSL technology rather than the faster fibre optic cable connections.

Japan outstripped the UK significantly, topping the charts with a maximum advertised download speed of 1Gbps according to the report. A majority of Japanese broadband customers connect to the internet using fibre optic technology, whilst on average only one in ten broadband customers in the global market have such an opportunity.

Government subsidies are helping nations including the US, Sweden and Norway to install the next-generation of broadband technology. The report claims that health, education, transportation and electricity industries all benefit from faster broadband and that these economic benefits far outweigh the initial cost of rolling out the fibre optic technology.

The OECD report has shown that the UK’s broadband tax and the funds that it generates could well be the best way forward if the government is to fully implement next-generation broadband technology over the coming years. However, critics believe that this process is not occurring quickly enough and there is little doubt that the UK still has some way to go before its average download speeds achieved via standard BT broadband deals can begin to approach those of the top nations.

For those looking for broadband, phone and TV bundle package deals the recent offer from BT Broadband whereby the first 3 months of broadband access is free has seen real savings. However, Simple Broadband has been reminded by BT Broadband that the deal comes to an end in just over a week – the last day to sign up is 11 December.

The free broadband deal applies to phone, TV and broadband packages but if you are not interested in the TV element then it is also valid for the phone and broadband only packages too.

Simple Broadband’s Communications Manager, Simon Gerrard said: “BT Broadband’s 3 months free offer is a great opportunity ahead of Christmas and those looking to switch their supplier will need to move quickly.”

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.”