Oftel's international benchmarking

Oftel’s research also found that residential broadband prices in the UK are as cheap as in France, Germany or the USA. DSL prices have fallen by 27 per cent since February 2002, with cable modem prices continuing to be cheaper than DSL prices. And for basic broadband business services, the UK is still cheaper than all of the other countries surveyed.

The UK broadband market benefits from competition between BT and the cable companies. There is also a flourishing level of competition between service providers which means UK consumers have a choice of around 200 DSL providers, and cable modems.

For the first time the report also looked at broadband fixed wireless access and satellite services. These markets offer additional choice for consumers, although they are still at an early stage of development and take-up is low. In general they were found to be more expensive than either DSL or cable modems. These services will be tracked in subsequent reports.

For basic, dial-up Internet access Oftel’s research showed UK consumers continue to get a good deal, particularly for unmetered packages.

Oftel also published a benchmarking report for the mobile market. This showed that UK prices are, on average, similar to those in France, Germany, Italy and Sweden. Handset prices and tariffs have fallen in the UK, strengthening the UK’s relative position against the other surveyed countries over the six months February to August 2002.

For further information on Oftel's benchmarking programme contact Elizabeth Harding (tel: 020 7634 8926 / e-mail: elizabeth.harding@oftel.gov.uk).