[OSX-Users] broadband speed and ofcom

[m.c. schraefel]

some of you may have seen this:


http://www.citywire.co.uk/personal/-/news/money-property-and-tax/content.aspx?ID=391121

Broadband providers are not up to speed, says watchdog
By Victoria Bischoff | 10:50:29 | 30 March 2010
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Broadband providers must inform customers of their connection speed 
before they sign up or face stricter regulation, consumer watchdog 
Ofcom has warned.
In a mystery shop 75% of shoppers were not informed the actual 
broadband speed they were likely to receive would be below the 
maximum speed advertised, Ofcom has revealed.
And although 85% of the mystery shoppers were given a rough idea of 
how fast their connection would be before signing up, almost half had 
to prompt providers for this information late in the sale process.
The news follows a report by Ofcom last year indicating that the 
headline speed a broadband customer signs up for does not necessarily 
represent the speed they receive, with only a fraction of internet 
users receiving the speed they pay for.
The watchdog has now announced plans to tighten its voluntary code of 
practice on broadband speeds, and do more to ensure consumers are 
given more consistent and accurate information about their broadband 
service and speed before they buy.
Ofcom hopes to agree changes to the code by the summer, and if an 
agreement cannot be reached with internet service providers, it will 
consider introducing formal regulations.
Ed Richards, Ofcom chief executive, said: 'Consumers are now 
receiving more accurate information at the point of sale about their 
broadband service. But our mystery shopping research reveals there is 
still significant further progress to be made, particularly in 
relation to the checkers used to calculate line speeds.'
However Matthew Wheeler, communications expert at uSwitch.com, said: 
'It's deeply concerning that, in Ofcom's mystery shop, three out of 
four customers were not informed that their actual speed was likely 
to fall short of the advertised speed.'
'It's time for broadband companies to be more transparent at the 
point of sale. The harder the line that Ofcom takes on this, the 
better,' he added.
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