The new study by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB)  also found that a quarter of companies were unhappy with their overall broadband service

Some firms were so dissatisfied with their broadband speeds that 13% even said they would consider moving premises for a faster connection.

John Wright, national chairman, Federation of Small Businesses, said: “The online world is crucial to small business development, especially as small firms look to grow and expand as the economy recovers.

“These figures show that the broadband service provided to small firms is letting them down. Small businesses need fast and reliable broadband to ensure the UK remains a key player in the global economy. The Digital Economy Bill gives the government a chance to guarantee Britain becomes a real competitor and the FSB is calling on the government to enforce rules on service providers and regulators so that small firms are given the fair deal they deserve.”

The FSB is calling for a minimum 8Mb connection for businesses.

It must also be recognised that some operators such as BT have recently lauched faster broadband services.   BT has launched a broadband service that offers speeds of up to 40 megabits per second (mbps).   The new service, named Infinity, will use fibre cables and will give some customers an upload speed of up to 10 Mbs.

BT said 4 million homes and businesses would be able to get it by 2011. BT Retail said the basic 40mbps service will be offered for £19.99 per month on an 18 month contract. It will also charge an installation fee of £50 for those on the lowest tariff.  The current highest speed service from BT available to homes is 20 Mbs, though not all homes can get this top speed service.

  Here are some good examples of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages

O2 Broadband offers three regular packages; Standard, Premium and Pro, which start at just £7.50 a month – as an existing O2 customer – for 8Mb broadband and “unlimited broadband” downloads, subject to a generous fair usage policy.

The Premium and Pro packages both come with 20Mb broadband and “unlimited” downloads, starting at just £10 a month and £17.50 a month for existing O2 customers. The Pro package also includes up to 2.5Mb uploads, a dedicated customer service number and an enhanced wireless broadband router.

Non-O2 customers will be charged an additional £5 a month for their broadband.

The free broadband offer makes perfect sense for anyone who wants to save money, while it offers 20Mb broadband and generous fair usage schemes starting at just £10 a month.

Here is a good example of some of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages

Recent research from a specialised telecoms research firm advised that  trends in the telecommunications sector, it was advised revenues collected from cellular service providers last year totalled $624 billion (£374 billion).

In addition to this number being up by 13 per cent on the previous year, it was noted that projected figures between now and the end of 2013 could see the value of this field reach $877 billion worldwide.

The research  added that the Asia Pacific region was leading the race to adopt mobile broadband and that early 3G adopters were particularly prevalent in countries including Australia, Japan and South Korea. The research conncluded that mobile services are on a growth path with mobile and wireless broadband but that voice service are not going away where they will keep its lion’s share of operator revenue for the foreseeable future, even as mobile operators diversify.

Last month, 3 Mobile announced it would introduce a new wireless broadband package that would be on sale in time for Christmas and would combine flexibility with affordability across two separate plans.

A monthly 5 GB option was unveiled priced with a £15 tariff when bought alongside a £69.99 wireless modem, while for £99.99, users get the same technology with a 3 GB data limit to be used over a three-month period and topped up after this has expired.

Here is a good example of some of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages

The funding was announced today (January 7th) by business secretary Lord Mandelson, who said it will upgrade the UK’s digital infrastructure so that more than 90 per cent of the population have access to the latest broadband. technology.  Investing in broadband will create jobs and give the economy a boost, while putting the UK at the forefront of the digital revolution.

According to the government, this is “essential” if Britain is to remain a major player in the world economy, as only 70 per cent of people are expected to make private investment in broadband before 2017.

The Government will provide money for the Next Generation Fund which will give rural homeowners with sufficient broadband to enable them to keep up with urban regions.

Currently, only about half of the country has access to broadband with a speed of 50 megabits per second but the government fears those in more isolated locations will struggle to catch up.

Proposals to help those in rural areas were initially put forward by local council leaders last year and will make the UK only the second country – after Finland – to carry out such a scheme.

Here is a good example of some of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages

A significant proportion (41%) of mobile broadband users say its their main broadband connection, according to Ofcom’s latest consumer research, which also found that take-up was most significant among the young and the affluent.

6% of adults have only mobile broadband and a further 8% have both a fixed-line broadband connection and a mobile broadband connection. Meanwhile 56% of UK homes have fixed-line broadband only.

Mobile broadband is most popular in the 15-34 age group: “These age groups also appear to be driving sole use of mobile broadband, with around one in 10 adults in this age group using only mobile broadband,” the report noted.

The Ofcom research also found that affluent demographic groups were driving mobile broadband adoption.

This is the first-time Ofcom has tracked the rise of mobile broadband in its annual Consumer Experience report and highlights the early adopters of this type of technology tend to be younger people.  Another intersting finding of the Ofcom research identifies that the cost of mobile broadband has come down massively in price since it was introduced, with there being a number of low-cost deals on the market in the £5 – £10 a month price range. 

Who knows where thigs are going but it looks like the take up of mobile broadband is another factor in the death of the landline and the migration of users to mobiles.

Here is a good example of some of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages

The cost of mobile calls dropped 47% between 2003 and 2008, while that of landlines fell by only 18%, according to Ofcom, the regulator. The average mobile bill, at £16.71 a month, is now lower than the average landline bill at £21.57.

Mobile operators are becoming increasingly competitive. Many broadband firms place a requirement for a landline for their home internet services, but it is possible to get a broadband and phone service without a landline. But there is a number of ways to ditch the landline and still get broadband.

Fixed Line Broadband tends to give the fastest home internet connection, and almost all providers require a landline, which costs about £11 a month. However, Virgin Media uses a fibre optic network which provides broadband without the need for a landline telephone. A 10Mb broadband deal will cost £20 a month or a “bundle” that includes broadband and a landline is £25 a month. Only half the country is covered by Virgin, so for many people — particularly those in rural areas — this is not an option.

Mobile Broadband is an alternative is to use a “dongle”, which provides access to the internet via the 3G mobile network. Only 3% of households use a mobile dongle as their sole access to the internet, according to Ofcom, but the take-up is rising rapidly.

Pay-as-you-go deals from 3 and T-Mobile cost as little as £20 a month for 1GB of downloads — which is adequate for anyone wishing to write and browse e-mails. Signing up to a contract can cut costs even further. For example, 3 charges only £10 a month for up to 1GB of downloads if an 18-month contract is signed.

About 12% of households have a mobile phone but no landline, compared with only 7% with a landline and no mobile. 

The Technology Strategy Board, charged with the implementation of part of the UK government’s Digital Britain strategy, is proposing to trial a superfast broadband network that would offer services not available on the wider internet. It is currently working to identify up to three areas of the country where the trial might take place.

The trial is not a bid to replace the existing freedom of the internet with a government-sanctioned set of services, but a genuine attempt to see what services might work best, and how companies might profit, particularly those companies whose bottom lines have been hit by internet-based piracy or free business models.

The hope is that by showing people that the infrastructure can be used for something profitable and by showing people who want to offer services that if they had that infrastructure their business models would be successful,  You build both their confidence, so they’re both more likely to invest.

Although superfast broadband will form the backbone of these “virtual villages”, the services offered will be far more varied than those currently available online to the rest of the population.

The Technology Strategy Board was established in 2007 by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to invest in technology-based innovation. Over the three years from 2008 to 2011 the board will channel more than £1 billion of public funding into technological innovation in the UK, a sum that will be matched by private-sector funding.

However, almost half of consumers felt their internet service provider (ISP) had failed to live up to its promises, with a whopping 70 per cent let down by connection speeds that did not meet their expectations.

The research,  found that 34 per cent of internet users said the reliability of their broadband connection was the most important aspect of their service – ahead of speed or value for money.

Just under a third of respondents said speed of connection was important to them, while 23 per cent listed value for money as their top priority.

The findings follow research published by Ofcom, the telecoms regulator, in July, which confirmed that most providers achieve only half the advertised “up to” speeds for broadband connection. Ofcom, which carried out 60 million readings for its survey, found that the average broadband speed in the UK was 4.1 megabits per second (Mbps) for services claiming speeds of up to 8Mbps.

Worryingly for consumers, over a third of people surveyed – 36 per cent – said their top broadband bugbear was poor customer service. What’s more, 55 per cent of customers who had complained felt that they had not reached a successful resolution with their ISP.

One of the best pieces of advice was that any consumers who wish to make a complaint should inform their provider in writing of their grievance. “But if you have exhausted your ISP’s complaints procedure, with no resolution after eight weeks, you should contact cisas.org.uk, an independent dispute resolution service, or otelo.org.uk, the telecommunications ombudsman, and ask them to advise you on the next step you should take,” he said.

Here are some good examples of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages etc

http://www.smeology.co.uk/voip-comparison/

http://www.jimac.co.uk/

Training Companies – B2B Index – UK business directory covering business training

http://www.ukwebmasterworld.com/

The PlusNet Value plan has a 10Gb usage limit. Remember that the PlusNet Value plan has the download limit  and if you exceed it will cost you extra.  But this might be ok if you live in one of PlusNet‘s ‘low cost’ areas, where the £11.99 monthly fee is reduced to just £5.99 a month….yes only £5.99, click on the PlusNet website to find out more.

The PlusNet variable pricing scheme also applies to the PlusNet Unlimited package, which costs either £15.99 or £19.99 a month.  There is no stated download limit on the PlusNet Unlimited package.

The PlusNet Unlimited Package costs either £15.99 or £19.99 per month.  It has a 15Gb limit and is also subject to an overuse penalty just like the PlusNet Value plan.

If  you live in one of the PlusNet ‘low cost’ areas the PlusNet Value plan is a good value option.  You’ll need to check on the PlusNet website to find out where the PlusNet ‘low cost’ areas are located.  Another benefit of going with PlusNet is there reputation for good quality Customer Service.

Sky has 4 broadband packages, where most of these offer free install if you also have a Sky TV subscription, plus a £5 discount on the monthly fee if you choose Sky Talk.  This means that you gett the base package for free.

The mid package  gives the user 8Mbit/s and costs £10 per month, without discounts and comes with a 40GB download allowance.

The top Sky Broadband package is good value with no download limit.  The top package is 16Mbit/s and is one of the fastest services on the market.

Sky‘s 8Mbit/s Connect service which is priced at a reasonable £17 per month, which is good for 8mbit/s, with a 40GB download limit.  This download limit should really be  enough for the vast majority of people.

Sky is also well known as providing good Technical Customer Service should you need it.

You need to remember that the Sky Broadband packages aren’t available everywhere, so check the Sky website for availability.  Sky’s 8Mbit/s Connect service which is priced at a reasonable £17 per month, which is good for 8mbit/s.

Here is a good example of some of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages

The importance of your Postcode

Not all broadband packages are available throughout the UK.  Some Internet Service and  broadband providers install their own equipment in BT’s telephone exchanges to provide certain services – this is known as Local Loop Unbundling.  If you live in a city or urban area, your BT exchange is more likely to be unbundled, giving you a far greater choice of the latest services.  If your exchange isn’t unbundled, you may not be able to receive them or pay extra for them.

The availability of mobile broadband is even more dependant on your postcode.  Where if you live in a rural location  your mobile broadband coverage is likely to be much poorer than that of someone living in an urban location.

Broadband Speed

Most broadband is provided through a technology known as ADSL.  Virgin is the exception and delivers broadband services through its own fibre-optic network.  Most ADSL services have a quoted download speed of 8Mbit/s, although the fastest services offer up to 24Mbit/s, whil Virgin has a 50Mbit/s fibre-optic package.  The speed you’ll actually receive depends on a range of factors.  For ADSL broadband, this includes how far from your telephone exchange you live and how many other people in your area use the same service.

Data Cap

Most ISPs cap the amount of data you can download each month.  Some packages have a limit, such as 10GB.  If you want a higher limit,   you’ll have to pay more each month.  Some broadband and Internet companies have fair use policies instead of, or in addition to, a set limit.  These policies explain which kinds of heavy usage are acceptable, but their terms can be vague so check out their websites for details.

The consequences of exceeding your limit or fair use policy vary.  Some providers will charge you for exceeding the limit.  Others will cap your download speed at peak times until your usage drops.  Some will even ask you to move to a more expensive subscription package.  You need to choose a package with the mright download limit for your needs.

Even if your broadband brovider has a generous download allowance, your online activities may be subject to traffic management or traffic shaping.  This means that your broadband provider prioritises certain types of internet traffic, such as viewing web pages and sending emails.  The broadband provider is effectively trying to discourage excessive downloading, so look out for this in the terms and conditions.

Free Equipment

To use your broadband connection you’ll need the right equipment. Most ISPs provide a wireless router for sharing your broadband connection wirelessly between several computers.  Your computer will need a wireless networking adaptor – they’re widely available and almost all laptops made in the past few years will have one built in.

If you’re not satisfied with the range or speed of the router received from your broadband provider, you can buy one from an electrical shop such as Maplin.  Most free routers remain the property of your ISP, though, so hold on to it even if you buy a replacement. 

If you already own a wireless router, it may be incompatible with your new service.  ADSL services, especially at speeds of 20Mbit/s or faster, use an updated version of this technology called ADSL2+.  Many older routers won’t work with such connections or will make your service slow or unreliable.  If your broadband is provided over cable by Virgin, you’ll need a cable router rather than an ADSL model.

All mobile broadband providers use a USB 3G adaptor, or as it’s sometimes known as a dongle, for accessing their service.   The longer your contract, the less you’ll have to pay for it  – if at all.

So remember to check out which equipment your broadband company will be providing you with and how long your contract will be.

Customer Service

One of the most important features to look out for when selecting broadband providers has to be Customer Service.  So check out which provider offers the customer service package that suits you. Some broadband providers will 0ffer 24 hour customer service support, with UK Call Centre’s and others will only offer web based customer service support. So check out the customer service that is on offer as part of your package, as it is very important.

Here is a good example of some of the interesting articles we have pulled together on Broadband: How to choose a broadband provider….How to Switch Broadband Provider..What is mobile Broadband….Best Value Broadband Packages