Broadband keeping Britain back

Britain may suffer both socially and economically in the future if nothing is done about the county's poor broadband connection speeds, according to a new study.

A team from the University of Oxford found that the UK was joined by Spain in Italy in having speeds just below the level required to have a good online user experience, reports the Daily Telegraph.

However, this could become a bigger problem in the future as applications like web-based television that require higher data-transfer speeds become more popular.

But economic risks are present too, according to Alastair Nicholson, a member of the team from the university's Said Business School.

"Because the study also found significant correlation between a nation's broadband quality and its advancement as a knowledge economy, policy makers may need to consider how to create an environment to improve key broadband performance parameters in the future," he told the newspaper.

Sweden and the Netherlands were found the have the best connections in Europe, which was due to huge investment in upgrading to fibre optic and cable broadband.