Question of the Fortnight

Is £400m enough to fix UK broadband?

Claims about speed in broadband adverts are misleading and tougher rules need to be introduced, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has said.

It criticised the common practice of advertising speeds as “up to”, such as in the Virgin Media advert pictured. Internet Service Providers (ISPS) are currently allowed to advertise a speed as long as 10 per cent of its customers can get it.

The ASA has published research showing that most customers believe they are likely to receive the speed advertised (or close to it) when that’s unlikely to be the case.

ASA chief executive Guy Parker said that “speed claims in ads contribute to consumers’ expectations of the broadband speeds they’ll receive, but their expectations are not being met”.

The research suggested three alternatives to “up to” speed claims – the average speed, the range of possible speeds, and the minimum speed.

But the Internet Services Providers’ Association Council said that none of these are an “effective alternative”. James Blessing, chair of the Council, said: “Any new guidance needs to reflect that whilst speed is an important factor, it is not the only reason a customer decides on a deal”.

The ASA accepts that there’s no “silver bullet” to ease the confusion, and that there are “pros and cons to all the alternatives”, but insists that changes must be made.

Its research will be studied by the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP), which sets the codes advertisers must abide by. It will report back next spring.

Download the ASA’S report from www.snipca.com/22603.