How fast is 'high-speed' broadband?

The debate over how to define high-speed internet services continues to cause confusion across the industry.

NTL, currently advertising a 150Kbps service as 'high speed', is challenging the ruling of the Adverstising Standards Authority (ASA) on how broadband should be defined.

In April the cable company agreed to remove the term 'high speed' from advertising for a 128Kbps internet service, after the ASA ruled that the term was misleading to consumers.

"We are using the term 'high speed' because everyone says we can," an NTL spokesman told vnunet.com.

"The Department of Trade and Industry, even Oftel, has no problem with the term for 128kpbs and faster."

In the April ruling the ASA noted that, while Oftel defined broadband as "higher bandwidth, always-on services, offering data rates of 128Kbps and above", most consumers would understand broadband to mean a service of upwards of 512Kbps.

According to a poll of 623 vnunet.com readers, 38 per cent feel broadband should be defined as 512Kbps or above, while 36 per cent believe it should be defined as 2Mbps or above.

Only three per cent considered 128Kbps to be a broadband service.

NTL is also appealing ASA's ruling on consumers being confused about broadband speeds, and said the research used was flawed and only based on the opinions of six computer magazine editors.

A spokesman for NTL said it had research proving that only four per cent of consumers considered 512Kbps or higher as broadband.

"Currently the definition of broadband is still at the consultation stage. It is only one market report that used the 256Kbps and up definition and no final decision has been made.

"We can use the term 'high speed' as long as we state the speed in the advertising matter, which we do," he said

A spokeswoman for ASA said it cannot adjudicate for either TV or websites, but that it would look at any complaints falling within its remit if there were objections to NTL using the term 'high speed' for the 150Kbps service.