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Broadband access 'essential' to consumers
Thursday 19th February 2009, by Daniel King
Broadband access has become as vital to British consumers as water and electricity, an expert has claimed.
The continuing effects of the credit crunch mean that many UK families are looking to reduce outgoings in a number of areas - but most are still reluctant to ditch their broadband connections.
Ashley Highfield, managing director and vice-president of consumer and online UK at Microsoft, said it is not as simple as "just cutting back on expenditure" for most households.
Speaking at the Intellect Annual Regent Conference 2009 in London, he highlighted a number of consumer trends that showed people are being "a lot more subtle" with their cost-cutting.
With staying in rapidly becoming "the new going out" for many British residents, he pointed to a rise in sales of flatscreen televisions and netbooks as bucking the overall downward trend in retail.
However, while people may be willing to sacrifice expensive subscription TV packages for cheaper options, Mr Highfield said they are less reluctant to "spin down" from broadband.
"There has been no evidence so far, and I don't believe there will be, of anyone giving up broadband anymore than anyone's going to give up water or electricity," he insisted.
Mr Highfield added that the service had now become such an essential part of everyday life that people are unlikely to cancel it even in the midst of the recession.
According to a report by Ofcom, the average amount of time spent using communication services such as internet and mobile phones rose by six minutes between 2002 and 2007.
Categories: Broadband
