UK regions currently without broadband should be at the head of the queue when it comes to getting next-generation networks, according to Ofcom.
The regulator's Consumer Panel said in a new report that communities that missed out on the initial broadband rollout should leapfrog other areas this time around.
The chair of the Ofcom Consumer Panel, Anna Bradley, said the issue of serving areas without broadband needs to be addressed before work begins on installing the next-generation networks. "We already know that the economic case for next-generation access will not stack up in some areas, and we can predict which areas that will be," she said. "So let's address these issues alongside commercial rollout, not after it," she said in a statement.
A Consumer Panel spokeswoman told sister site silicon.com: "We're not asking for ISPs to pay but we could nevertheless ask Ofcom to make clear what the shape of regulation could be so that the cost implications are clear."
She added: "It's about asking [ISPs] to identify where the black spots are and then look at alternative funding models."
Next-generation broadband could bring speeds of up to 100Mbps, which Ofcom said should deliver new services that will bring "huge benefits" to UK consumers, including giving hard-to-rearch regions access to telemedicine and remote eduction.
According to recent figures from the Office for National Statistics, one third of UK homes are still without internet access.
Talkback
Those who live in remote areas that are beyond the reach of current wired systems do have choices for broadband. Expensive but feasible for very light use is mobile broadband available within the radio coverage areas. Outside that I would suggest that those in a particular remote location should well consider combining to install a two way satellite service feeding a local server to which they can connect by cable or radio. Again, expensive, but it is probable that the satellite ISP would offer a subsidy for a long contract.
Fixed wireless, it doesn't get the expensive press of mobile 3G, is nowhere the cost of satellite (the same as ADSL pricing in our case) and provides a far superior service to dodgy phone lines.
Low cost to implement with the correct engineering and covers thousands of sq km with 2-3 access sites..
Investing in FWA (not some hairbrained wifi or mesh system either) is a solution to those outside and thos inside ADSL coverage.
Bill
Kijoma Broadband
Sussex,Surrey,Hampshire