Rother District Council

What is High Speed broadband?

There is no precise definition, but the term is generally used to describe broadband provided through fibre-optic cable or wireless technology that is faster than that which is available through the existing copper telephone network.

The Government has stated a commitment to ensure that by 2015, everyone in the UK will have access to broadband speeds of at least 2 Mbps (megabits per second), and that 90% of the UK population will have access to 25 Mbps.

 The most common form of Broadband currently available is called ADSL and is delivered over a standard copper BT telephone line. The current ADSL network can provide up to 8 Mbps but this varies considerably depending on where you live.

Why is High Speed Broadband Important?

2 Mbps is OK if you want to surf the web or order your groceries online, but many of us want more. We want to watch on demand TV, play on-line games with friends and use live video links to catch up with family.
Schools and colleges are increasingly using the internet - textbook materials are complemented with online resources, and children can access all of these materials from school and home.

Businesses need broadband to compete on a global level, and seek out high speed broadband access when choosing to grow their business. High speed broadband accelerates business development, and provides new opportunities for innovation, expansion, and e-commerce. Communities that connect their residents create wealth and attract business investments. Broadband enables people to work from home, saving time and expenses, and the environment.

Telemedicine creates opportunities for doctors and healthcare specialists to work together as a virtual team, with specialists located in any part of the world. Patients' conditions can be monitored remotely without the need for them to leave home.

Access to many public services is also increasingly being driven online. It is important to make online access a reality for as many people as possible.

Lots of places seem to have high speed broadband already. Why don't we?

Telecoms infrastructure (cables, exchanges, ducts, wireless networks, etc.) is provided by private companies such as BT Openreach, Cable & Wireless & Fujitsu. It's expensive, and these companies will only invest in the infrastructure to provide higher speeds if they know it will be profitable. That's why they will give priority to towns and cities where there are large numbers of customers. It is estimated that whilst two-thirds of the UK population will be able to access high-speed broadband by 2015, the rest will not - the so-called 'final third' which are largely the rural areas of the country where there is market failure as it will never be profitable to private telecoms companies to invest.

What's being done about it?

East Sussex County Council has secured £10.64m funding commitment from central Government to help provide high speed broadband to the rural areas of the County. It has pledged £15m of its own money, and with this combined fund they will seek a private telecoms company to invest in the necessary infrastructure to provide high speed broadband across the County.

Will that mean it's creating a monopoly?

No. The network will be an 'open access' network, which means that any Internet Service Provider will be able to offer their internet packages to customers. This means that customers, be they residents or businesses, will have the same or more choice as they have now when choosing their internet or phone provider.

We can get perfectly adequate broadband here. What's the point in going to all this expense and effort?

We know that internet speeds vary considerably across the County, this is due to a number of factors but mainly, the fact that the signal is carried over copper wire and the signal strength worsens with distance from the local exchange.

Even if your broadband service is fine now, the existing copper wire infrastructure won't be able to cope with the demands that advances in technology will place on it in the future. In only the last few years we have seen a massive increase in the use of the internet for video streaming, social networking and telecommunications through services such as YouTube, the i-Player, Facebook and Skype. The performance of the copper network will get worse over time as internet usage increases because its capacity is limited, and it does degrade over time.

You can help by registering your interest in high speed broadband by completing a survey. ESCC Broadband Survey  

This doesn't commit you to anything, but it will help us to provide vital evidence of the demand for better broadband, and thus help to make faster broadband a reality.

We need as many people as possible to complete the survey - so please tell your friends, relatives and work colleagues and encourage them to register too.

For more information on the County Council's plans for high speed broadband, please visit their website

 ESCC Broadband

Other Related websites

Ofcom Price comparison

Digital Britain Report- National Archives

Broadband-Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Broadband Speed Test

Broadband speed checker

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