ISPreview.co.uk: Broadband speeds faster than 2Mbps already needed

The government's universal connectivity target of two megabits per second (Mbps) is already too slow several years before it is due to be attained, according to ISPreview.co.uk.

The broadband website said current trends point to high-speed broadband services only being rolled out in urban regions where the technology can be deployed in the most cost-effective way and that without government funding rural communities will lose out.

Broadband is increasingly vital to everyday life, with faster connections benefitting download speeds and VoIP solutions and a new ICM poll reveals that 40 per cent of people would not consider relocating to a region that offered slow services.

Mark Jackson, editor-in-chief at ISPreview.co.uk, said: "Many commentators, including myself, feel that the government's pledge to deliver a minimum broadband speed of 2Mbps to everybody in the country by 2012 is already too little too late."

Buying a home with a fast broadband connection is more important to people than how close the nearest pub is, according to ICM figures.