Press

Too little, too late

Lord Carter’s recently published interim Digital Britain report set out the current Government’s strategy for supporting digital and communications businesses in order to place the UK at the heart of the ‘digital economy’.

Like so many technology businesses across the UK, Onyx Group welcomed the recognition of the importance of the digital sector to the country’s economy and of the actions that will need to be taken to secure Britain’s place in this rapidly developing industry. However, closer inspection of the report reveals that a key proposal in the report does not go nearly far enough. The devil is in the detail.

One of the many recommendations made by Lord Carter was that there should be universal access to 2MB per second broadband by 2012. Such access is absolutely vital for the UK’s economy, ensuring that citizens have access to information, e-commerce and public services alike.

The flaw lies with the proposed connection speed, which cannot compare to the high speeds of up to 100MB per second available in countries such as Korea and Japan. These connection speeds mean that data transfer is both faster and cheaper, which is vital for securing a country’s competitive advantage.

This is especially pertinent for the North East, as industries from computer gaming to graphic design, architecture to quantity surveyors, all of which have a significant role in the region’s economy, are dependent upon high speed internet access. The region’s five universities, while frequently relying on their own networks, also need access to high speed connections if they are to remain at the front of internationally leading research. The national average speed of 3.6MB per second will need to be increased dramatically if the UK is to maintain a competitive advantage.

It’s not only businesses which will feel the impact of a slow internet connection. Services such as the BBC iplayer, which are enjoyed across the country on a regular basis, simply will not function in some areas.

The underlying problem with the recommendation is that it is based on upgrades to the UK’s existing telecommunications infrastructure, rather than investment in new cables. The existing wires, made of copper, are only capable of supporting relatively low connection speeds and certainly not those of up 100MB per second enjoyed in other countries.

Reliance on this infrastructure will also mean that high speed broadband is simply not available in remote rural areas, increasing the UK’s growing ‘digital divide’. With copper wires, the connection speed decreases the further the user is from the internet exchange , meaning that remote areas will continue to suffer unless investment is made in new infrastructure. This is unlikely as upgrades were already underway on the existing system before the interim report was published.

If this Government is serious about putting Britain at the forefront of the ‘digital economy’, it will need to invest in fibre-optic cables across the UK running to the curbside or home. The cost of doing so is estimated at £20bn worth of investment - a relatively insignificant sum when compared to the billions recently spent bailing out the country’s banks.