Gordon Brown has emphasised the importance of super fast broadband access on a universal scale in the UK during a recent speech.

Mr Brown said that it is not inaccurate to equate the importance of the arrival of broadband to that of domestically available electricity. He also pointed out that it would empower the citizens of the UK, as well as saving billions of pounds of taxpayer’s money in the process.

The most significant use of broadband for Mr Brown is in the formation of government policy and the movement towards a truly democratic society. He said that everyone should be able to have their say on the shape of their communities, as well as on the progress of government on a local and national level.

Mr Brown also expects the use of the internet to simplify the standard bureaucratic exercises that are required when moving house, changing job or dealing with any state-funded service.

There is already evidence that broadband and internet-based technologies have saved the government money, as pensions secretary Yvette Cooper has shown figures proving that one billion pounds has already been saved thanks to making services available on the internet.

People will soon be able to claim the Jobseeker’s Allowance online, as well as getting access to their old age pension, which the government claims will save another hundred million pounds each year.

So far the only barrier between the complete virtualisation of many government services has been the lack of universal broadband coverage. It is hoped that cheap cable broadband, subsidised ADSL technology and mobile broadband will all play a part in reducing this deficit.

Simple Broadband’s Simon Gerrard said “It is good to see politicians paying attention to the increasingly essential nature of high speed broadband.”

The legal wrangling that has afflicted the sale and allocation of the digital spectrum may soon come to an end, with the UK government planning on holding auctions before 2010 is over.

The spectrum that is currently being disputed will eventually provide better mobile broadband availability and speeds for UK customers and it is hoped that the first services using it will be in operation by 2012.

Industry regulator Ofcom and the Department of Business Innovation and Skills ratified plans to sell the spectrum last week, signalling the conclusion of a long period of consultation that began in mid 2009.

Minister Stephen Timms said that the government had ensured that public interests were being protected under the new plans, but also confirmed that the business benefits would be considerable if the plans for the mobile broadband spectrum were instigated.

Mr Timms also said that high speed mobile broadband access would be available to a large proportion of the population as a result of the new plans.

The plans had to undergo some revisions after Orange and T-Mobile finalised a merger deal that was subsequently approved by the EU. The most important change for the networks and the public is the obligatory roll-out of near universal mobile broadband coverage falling at the feet of whichever organisation buys the 800MHz spectrum.

The range that is currently utilised by ageing 2G networking technology will be replaced with 3G and eventually 4G under the new plans and most mobile broadband providers will be able to make substantial improvements to their services as a result.

Experts believe that the auction will take place in early 2011. Simple Broadband’s Simon Gerrard said “The improvements that must now be made to the speed and availability of mobile broadband are exciting for all and incentives such as the Orange mobile broadband free laptop deal could soon be accompanied by tempting 4G options.”

A new report suggests that UK businesses will benefit significantly if the government’s targets for blanket broadband coverage are met.

Broadband is now considered to be an essential commodity for home users as well as business customers and although the importance of high speed broadband for businesses is well known, it is equally important that sufficient customers are able to get online and access services in driving revenues.

According to a new report authored by the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA), UK businesses could net an additional £1.4 billion in ad revenue if every household in the UK is given access to a 2Mbps (minimum) broadband connection, which is the government’s plan.

It is estimated that nearly five per cent of UK citizens are stuck with sluggish dial-up internet connections, whilst many more have no kind of internet access at all in their homes. This means that there is an untapped market out there from which businesses could benefit if universal broadband becomes a reality.

The IPA believes that nearly 37 per cent of consumers would make a purchase online if their internet experience was boosted with a broadband connection, which would make ad space more valuable and drive further revenue for businesses in all sectors.

The IPA’s Nigel Gwilliam noted the degree to which broadband had shaped market trends and influenced the behaviour of consumers online. Mr Gwilliam also said that the new report was the first of its kind, demonstrating that home broadband connectivity was directly linked into the success of businesses.

Simple Broadband’s Communication Manager Simon Gerrard added that “Businesses will benefit hugely from the arrival of universal broadband and the best news is that the opportunities will be relevant to any enterprise from any background with the ambition to make waves online.”

As of January 25th 2010, new and existing BT Total Broadband customers in an enabled exchange area will be eligible for the up to 40Mb service. This will be one of the fastest broadband services available to customers in the UK.

More good news for BT customers is the price. They are charging as little as £19.99 per month for the 40Mb service, which is more than £7/month cheaper than Virgin Media’s high speed service. However, in balanced against that, the Virgin Media offer, it is 10Mb faster than BT, at 50Mb, and Virgin Media are also very reliable with their speed – if you pay for 50Mb, you will get very close to 50Mb nearly all the time. It remains to be seen if BT will be able to get close to the promised 40Mb with such regularity.

One factor that is definitely in BT Broadband’s favour is their upload speed. At 10Mb upload speed, it does put most of it’s rivals to shame, up to 6 times faster than Virgin Media. It is always worth remembering though, the advertised “up to” speed and the actual speed you get can vary greatly with BT.

By the end of 2010, BT are estimating that 4,000,000 homes and businesses will have access to this new faster service, and they expect many to take advantage. With online gaming on the up, a high speed connection is becoming a “must” for many households with teenagers, making their gameplay smoother, and this speed increase could even lead to a further boom in the online gaming sector.

Although the government and the major telecommunications networks are pumping money into the future of broadband in the UK, not everyone is relying on support from the public sector or large private organisations. In Dorset and Cumbria, two new schemes are being put in motion with local backing in order to ensure that businesses and residents in these regions can keep up with the rest of the country and get high speed broadband.

In Dorset it was revealed earlier this week that provider South West Internet (SWI) was seeking funding to help initiate new plans that would see an upgrade to its current broadband network, allowing for better coverage and faster speeds. At the moment it mostly offers businesses and consumers broadband via an extensive wireless network, but it hopes to use fibre optic technology to offer even faster speeds of 100Mbps or more.

SWI is calling on local enterprises to help support its plans and most will consider it an investment in the future of their business. A trio of local councils are also adding funding to the project, although input from the local business community will be necessary to ensure that it is a success.

In Cumbria local councillors are pushing for a new fibre optic broadband trial to be carried out. The trial will hopefully use money from the Northwest Regional Development Agency, which currently has the means to support pilot schemes in two different areas of the region.

A spokesperson for the county council voiced some concern that without action it was possible that Cumbria could become overlooked during the implementation of new broadband technologies. It was also suggested that with high speed connections available, the region would be far more attractive to businesses, which would cause faster growth in the local economy and help to drive new BT business broadband packages and those from other providers.

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.

A report from Cisco has said that broadband quality and reach in the UK ranks just 25^th in a worldwide league table.

This may sound like bad news, especially when considering some of the less developed countered higher up the table. However, Cisco has made it clear that the UK?s broadband network is adequate for today?s requirements but, more importantly, that its position is likely to improve.

Broadly speaking we agree with this assessment. The increase in fibre networks and the Digital Britain project will vastly improve provision of broadband in the UK such that it will be able to keep pace with the ever increasing requirements of the broadband users in the UK.