The Broadband Revolution

You dont't have to delve too deeply into your memory to remember the days when the sound of dial-up internet could be heard in offices, studies and bedrooms throughout the land. The internet has actually been around since the 1980s although it wasn’t commercially used until the 1990s. But it’s only really been since the noughties that it’s become the mighty force it is today.

What was the ignition that fuelled this explosion? The answer is: broadband.

It was in 2000 that broadband was made available to the masses. With the invention of ADSL cables, people no longer had to choose between chatting on the phone and surfing the net.

These ADSL cables also accelerated broadband speeds to ten times as fast as their dial-up predecessors. Most ADSL cables offered speeds between 128Kb and 1MG, but by today’s standards these speeds were slow. However, back then everyone thought this was amazing; a page wouldn’t take half a minute to download, it would appear before your eyes in a matter of seconds.

The music and film industries felt knock-on effects of broadband, for better or for worse as people could simply download their favourite artist’s albums or films instead of buying the hard copy. The world became better connected and landline phones were less popular thanks to VoIP calling facilities and Skype.

The second half of the 2000s was when the broadband revolution began developing at a more rapid rate. ADSL cables are being replaced with fibre optic alternatives that greatly increase potential for super-fast broadband speeds. Right now most homes in the UK have between 2MB and 24MB speeds but in the next few years even these lightning quick speeds are going to seem slow.

Many leading service providers are, as we speak, installing new and widening their existing fibre optic cable networks and developing better technology to allow speeds of up to 100MB. These super charged speeds will secure the future of technologies such as internet TV.

It’s not only the connections that have improved however. The number of households with internet access has greatly increased in just four years. 73% or 19.2 millio
British households had internet access in 2010, which is a 0.9 million increase on 2009 and a five million increase since 2006.

More people are enjoying internet access thanks to a fall in costs. As the broadband market becomes increasingly competitive, more companies fight for a slice of the action, causing prices to fall even as quality increases. So not only can you get faster, more reliable broadband, you can bundle your internet up with TV and phone deals too.