Speed limits on our digital highway

Many people expected the Digital Britain report by Lord Carter (Report, 30 January) to provide a clear way forward, but we are left with promises of more watching and assessing, which is frustrating for the millions of households missing out on the full capabilities of broadband.
The report seems to back a fibre-to-the-kerb solution at a cost of around £5bn. However, it falls short of recommending how funds should be made available to ensure a true future-proof fibre network is rolled out. The universal service obligation looks set to be delivered by a mixture of first-generation broadband solutions, and 2Mbps by 2012 will be quickly outpaced by applications and changes in internet usage.

Parts of the UK will have 50Mbps in 2009, and 40% of homes by 2012 will have the choice of 50Mbps from Virgin Media and similar speeds from BT, but the question still stands as to how far the firms will go and whether their plans can be carried out during a recession.

This report was an opportunity to ensure the UK had a clear path towards a future-proof e-economy, but with the current proposals we are going to have campaigns every four or five years to resolve broadband speed/coverage issues.
Andrew Ferguson
Editor, Thinkbroadband.com

Introducing a levy on all broadband users to offset the cost of illegal downloading to the industry will antagonise consumers and effectively legitimise illegal downloading, without addressing the root cause of why some turn to illegal content. Our own study shows that 26% of people using video on demand (VOD) services engage in illegal downloading. But this behaviour is often driven by a frustration with legitimate VOD services, rather than a desire to break the law. For mainstream consumers, the current UK VOD market is characterised by confusing rights restrictions which limit the range of available content in one place, and by a highly fragmented delivery model which requires viewers to visit multiple providers to find the programme they want. And 42% of those using illegal services are motivated by a desire to watch American shows before they screen in the UK.

Illegal providers can provide a better choice than many legitimate VOD services. By failing to come together to provide a coherent way for viewers to find the right content, the media industry is pushing viewers to illegal providers.
Stuart Knapman
Director, Essential Research

Broadband access for all means whole communities will have the opportunity to collaborate online. The rise in popularity of online social networks has already enabled users to connect with friends and family all over the world. More than just creating "virtual" friendships, access to broadband will build meaningful communities on an international and local level.

Although Lord Carter's interim Digital Britain report and Hazel Blears's recent Guidance on Building a Local Sense of Belonging document show that politicians understand that community cohesion matters and that the internet can play a role in this, new government guidelines offer little incentive or clear funding in terms of making this a reality.

The key to implementation of these guidelines is to empower communities by making available the tools to bring about change. Accessible broadband is a step towards improving communication, but it will require meaningful social networks, properly managed, online and off, to help communities establish common goals and work together to make a real difference in real-life neighbourhoods.
Paul Fox
Managing director, Neighbo.com

If "broadband is fast becoming something that everyone is entitled to have" (Leader, 30 January), it ought to be the government's responsibility to ensure its delivery to every home and school. The failure to invest in adequate railway infrastructure 30 years ago means our public transport system compares poorly to most of Europe's; failure to invest in digital infrastructure in a way that ensures fair access to truly high-speed internet will cost us dearly in years to come. We must learn the lessons of the past, avoid reliance on a risk-averse private sector, and urgently lay fibre optic cables to every home in the UK.
Prateek Buch

Loughton, Essex