Why Are Faster Speeds Needed?

Superfast broadband refers to broadband connections of 20Mbps or above. Superfast broadband connections enable users to surf the internet, download music & video and stream television at speeds higher than most internet users. While the current average UK broadband connection is around 3.6Mb, Superfast broadband products deliver speeds of up to 100Mbps, usually through sophisticated fibre-optic broadband networks or telephone lines.

Most of us can do everyday tasks over the internet such as catching up on the latest news, online shopping, social networking, etc which is why we are often asked why high speed internet is needed when not a lot of technology can make use of it at this moment in time. We counter this with a simple analogy: The road network had to be built before we could easily use cars to travel between locations. The same is true for faster internet access. A lot of technology is in the pipeline but is being held back by the lack of fast internet connections, some of which we describe below.

Another point to keep in mind is that not everybody can get good quality broadband or any broadband at all to allow them to do the things that many of us take for granted online. Some people are on the edge of the limit for broadband due to their distance from the exchange. This means they may have a connection that disconnects frequently, a connection that has speeds at less than 0.25 Meg or no access to broadband at all. NextGenUs is looking to define the yardstick and see that everybody in rural areas gets a good level of service with the eventual aim of getting everybody onto fibre and at the same speed to allow people to do the basics such as online shopping as well as use the more bandwidth intensive applications listed below.

Telemedicine

In its simplest form, this technology can simply be used to have a video discussion with a consultant in high definition. At an event hosted by Rory Stewart (MP Penrith and the Borders), he mentioned that somebody with alzheimer’s would have to travel all the way to Newcastle just to talk to a consultant. How easy would it be if you could just start your computer and chat with them in such good quality that it was as if you were in the same room…

In a more advanced form, telemedicine provides a communication and collaboration platform that is designed to help a remote physician evaluate patients based on physiological data derived from a variety of medical devices such as a stethoscope, blood pressure cuff, pulse oximeter and other diagnostic equipment.

Both of the above technologies are bandwidth intensive requiring a minimum of 20 meg both upload and download. While today’s download speeds would support this technology, it also requires the same upload speed. None of the available residential access products, other than the one we deployed in Ashby in Lincolnshire, are able to support this technology. Even the proposed product for rural areas by the incumbent operator only provides 2mbps upload on a residential connection.

Cisco, a leading provider of this technology, has been trying to get this technology deployed within the NHS. The NHS have repeatedly rejected the idea on the grounds that nobody will be able to use it because of current upload speeds on internet connections.

eLearning

Using similar technology to Telemedicine, classroom lessons could be delivered over the internet when students are unable to get to that lesson. They could also be recorded if a student is ill to allow them to catch up at a later date.

Video Calling

Services such as Skype have recently started offering HD video calling. A fast internet connection allows this kind of technology to work allowing you to talk to friends and family all around the world.

Entertainment

Industry experts have said that over time, the majority of television will delivered over the internet. The BBC accepted this view a few years back and started YouView as a way to cater to demand. YouView is a technical standard developed by the BBC alongside ITV and other broadcasters to allow television and set top box manufacturers to create products compatible with the standard. This will allow you to plug your television or set top box into your internet connection and view live TV as well as catch up on programmes you have missed all in high definition.

A prime example of a community to benefit from services such as YouView is the village of Crosby Ravensworth in Cumbria. Being in a valley, it uses a repeater aerial on the hill to pick up the signal and rebroadcast it to the community. The trouble with doing this is channels are lost in the process meaning several channels are unavailable. YouView makes all channels available assuming a fast internet connection is available.

Also emerging are services to allow downloading of movies to watch in high definition. With a faster connection, you need never go into the nearest town or city again to rent a DVD!

Working From Home

With more and more of us choosing to work from home, accessing files on your office network can be a requirement for some people. With fast connections at both the office and your home, large files can be downloaded quickly, worked on from home and uploaded back to the office network.

Another technology some of you may have used is Remote Desktop. This allows you to view your office computer screen as if you were sitting in front of it but there is a problem: Graphics tend to be removed or reduced in quality. With high speed connections, this doesn’t need to happen and you can literally feel like you were sitting in front of the computer.

Gaming

Next generation of games consoles (xBox, PS3, iPad and PC Gaming machines) will download all games rather than using discs. This is already happening with a number of games through the download stores the manufacturers have made available. Because of the size of games, a fast internet connection will be needed to download the game quickly.

xBox Live and the Playstation Network need low latency fast connection to get the most of your gaming experience…[tooltip content="Broadband in excess of 20Mbps" url="faster"]Superfast[/tooltip] Broadband is essential for the new gaming networks that are now being launched. Onlive is a new “cloud gaming” system which will not even download the client unless you have a fast connection. Using a “legacy copper ADSL” connection is no longer a viable solution to your gaming needs!

Low “ping” on fibre optic connections (basically the time in milliseconds it takes to reach another computer on the internet) also means that online gaming against players all around the world works better than on currently available connections with less “jitter” and “lagging”.

Online Backups

We all know how important it is to backup our photos, videos, documents, etc. from our computer to safeguard us against the worst happening but what is the best way to do it? Currently, many people use external hard drives but these are often left right next to the computer. What if, in an extreme example, both were stolen?

Backing up securely online (by encrypting with a password only you know) is a good idea as the backup is a good distance away from the source but not an option for many of us as we have slow upload speeds. Even though our download speed may be 4-5 Meg, the upload speed will always be around 0.5 Meg which is too slow for backing up a lot of files. Our connections have the same speed upload as they do download making online backups a viable option.

All Of The Above, All At The Same Time!

The average modern UK household has several handheld devices, games machines and laptops running from one connection…is your current connection up to it?

All of the above can be done at the same time by other family members / employees without impacting on what anybody else is doing.

Increase Property Prices

During the rollout stages of our high speed future proofed networks, there will be many people interested in moving to locations where this technology has been deployed thus increasing house prices. Think of the setup fee charged as adding value you your property.