Britains in North feeling the effects of slow broadband connections

A warning has been issued by the Chamber of Commerce in Inverness that many of the businesses in the area could lose out in the current global digital economy due to the quality and speed of the broadband connections in the area.

The ability of companies in Inverness to effectively trade online was seriously impacted by the slow connection speeds in the region according to the warning from its Chamber of Commerce.

The concern of locals regarding the broadband speeds from services will be passed on when chief executive Stewart Nichol meets with Ofcom, the UK communications regulator.

“What’s clear is that there is a huge gap between what broadband providers promise and what is actually being delivered on the ground,” said Mr Nichol.

Business growth for businesses in the Highland region was being severely hampered by limited effective satellite broadband services in the small rural communities and slow broadband access in most of the other areas, especially with the increasing need to trade online said the chamber.

“Some of our own members say there are times of day when they’ve simply stopped sending large files because the connection cannot cope with it. Speed is key and this is what businesses in this region require to compete effectively in the global economy” Said Mr Nichol.

The roll-out of wireless broadband throughout the Western Isles, which will be funded by public money, was being reviewed to ensure that the service was “fit for purpose” recently.

The rollout of this new wireless service by Connection Communities (ConCom) was to go ahead following the recent review, which took several factors into account, according to the Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), although concern over the reliability of the service have been raised in European Parliament by Opponents of ConCom.

Source – BBC.co.uk