Urban/Rural Digital Divide
Despite increased government investment to extend superfast broadband coverage, it seems that there is still a significant digital divide between urban and rural areas when it comes to a reliable broadband service. Europasat, a satellite broadband service provider, has recently conducted a survey of people working in rural areas. The results show that rural workers lose nine days every year, on average, due to slow broadband connections.
Europasat surveyed a thousand workers in rural areas, almost half of which (49%) indicated that they do not think that they receive the broadband speed they pay for. On average, workers spend 16 minutes each day waiting on a slow internet connection. The vast majority of those who were surveyed (79%) indicated that a better internet connection would be beneficial to them in their current jobs. Respondents reported experiencing a range of negative emotions as a result of limited or no internet access including anger (25.6%), stress (27.2%) and anxiety (16.1%).
The digital divide between rural and urban areas extends beyond the issue of broadband. Many rural areas are still without 4G mobile coverage and some areas receive very little, or no, mobile network coverage at all. This means that mobiles phones cannot even provide an adequate substitution for poor broadband speeds.
This situation puts businesses in rural areas at a clear disadvantage. Broadband and mobile communications are rapidly becoming an integral aspect of business communications. Businesses need reliable connections to suppliers and consumers if they are to remain competitive in today’s economy. The fast-paced nature of modern business means that companies without a fast and reliable internet connection can struggle to succeed. A slow and unreliable internet connection can be severely detrimental to the efficiency of workers and the overall productivity of businesses. These days, consumers expect to be able to interact with companies online and will simply go elsewhere if they don’t get the level of service they expect.
The government is on track to deliver superfast broadband to 90% of the UK by the end of this year, and has a manifesto pledge to extend this to 95% of the country by the end of 2017. Superfast broadband is considered to be that which delivers download speeds of at least 24Mbps. They are also currently considering measures to extend superfast broadband coverage to the final 5%. Although 5% may not sound like much, it equates to around one and a half million premises and will cost an estimated £500 million. The two main funding options currently being considered are general taxation and an industry levy, with the latter said to be the preferred option.
Ofcom, the UK’s telecoms regulator, is currently undertaking a review of the UK’s communications market which includes both the broadband and mobile sectors. The regulator is reportedly in favour of an industry levy to raise funds for extended broadband coverage.
With many aspects of life becoming increasingly digitalised, a decent internet connection is arguably vital for social inclusion. Not only is it important on a personal level, it has become increasingly essential in terms of education and business. Those in rural areas without adequate broadband and mobile network coverage are lagging behind the rest of society. The gap between urban and rural areas needs to be bridged to provide consistent broadband and mobile coverage nationwide, for the benefit of individuals, businesses and the economy as a whole.