UK 'leading Europe' in broadband take up

The UK's love affair with broadband continues to flourish, according to new research published yesterday.

The European Competitive Telecommunications Association (Ecta) released figures which show that while the take-up rate for broadband is slowing across Europe, there is still significant and continuous growth across the sector, with the UK one of the strongest contributors.

UK internet access rose in 2007 to 67 per cent from 63 percent in 2006, while households with broadband lines also rose from 44 per cent in 2006 to 57 per cent in 2007.

Leading countries for broadband take-up were also shown to have benefited from competition generated by the "effective unbundling of the local loop", giving the UK a broadband penetration rate of 24.9 per cent.

In the last year, the number of people with broadband lines in Europe grew to 92 million, representing a growth of ten per cent.

The Ecta Broadband Scorecard, established in 2001, is internationally recognised as the leading means by which to test the popularity of broadband and is employed by institutions such as the European Commission.