Half Of Broadband Users ‘Don’t Care’ About Speed

Almost half of UK broadband users don’t care how fast their Internet connection is, as long as it works, a new survey has found.

In a study of 5,200 UK consumers carried out by YouGov and commissioned by BSkyB, only 30 percent said they were frustrated with the consistency of their Internet speed, with 44 percent claiming they “don’t know” or “don’t care” how fast their connection is.

Meanwhile, just 6 percent said that speed alone was important, with 39 percent preferring value for money and 36 percent claiming that customer satisfaction was their top priority.

“What this research has done is to cut through the noise around broadband speeds and listen to what the majority of broadband users say about what matters to them,” said Delia Bushell, Sky’s Director of Broadband and Telephony. “In short, people want broadband that works, transparency over what they are getting, and a price that suits their pocket.”

Rural broadband still poor

The lack of interest in speed is surprising, given around three million people in the UK still cannot get 2Mbps broadband. A recent experiment in Yorkshire saw a pigeon beat a computer in a race to transfer a 300MB video 75 miles. The pigeon made the journey in just 80 minutes, while the computer only managed to upload 24 percent of the video in this time.

The UK is currently ranked 33rd in the world for broadband speed, with an average household connection of 7.71 Mbps, according to broadband metrics group Ookla. However, the government has promised to improve this situation.

Earlier this year, Ofcom slammed Internet service providers for advertising speeds that consumers were not able to receive. “Broadband users should get what they pay for,” said Robert Hammond, head of post and digital communications at Consumer Focus, responding to Ofcom’s research. “If consumers pay for a Ferrari-style Internet service, they should not get push bike speeds.”

Email top activity

The YouGov study also revealed that nearly 90 percent of consumers go online at home every day, spending an average of 2 hours 17 minutes online. The most popular online activity was email, with 97 percent of users checking their inbox at least once a week. This was followed by browsing news websites (75 percent), using internet banking (66 percent), visiting social networking sites (61 percent) and watching video clips (42 percent).

“Consumers are getting more from their broadband than ever. It is all too easy to forget about the way broadband has transformed our lives and, as the research shows, it has made our lives easier, cheaper and more fulfilling,” said Bushell. “Broadband is no longer a ‘nice-to-have’ – it’s a vital part of modern day life.”