Its probably alot easier to create a fast network infrastructure from scratch than rip up all the old copper infrastructure we have, especially when there are share holders to please!

I'm not particularly surprised, as Dales says its a whole heap easier to build an entirely new infrastructure than to upgrade the current one and the various companies involved are in no hurry to upgrade because its nowhere near being financially sensible.

BT are in the process of upgrading the core network and this will have an effect but the last mile is a long way off seeing improvement.

Until BT is either broken up and sold to create a more level playing field or come back under the control of the Goverment then we will always have a dropping to pieces infrastructure. There is a new housing estate that we were thinking of moving to and we found out the average speed is 2Mbps which is pathetic. The underlining network just doesn't cut it in this modern age.

BT is also so over complex in it's structure that some idiot at BT put a limiter on my line by mistake and it crippled my line to 256Kbps and it took 6 months and about 12 visits from BT to get it fixed. The only reason I got it fixed was emailing their CEO and pestering him. At first he didn't want to accept responsibility until I was their customer eventhough it's their line at the end of the day so I had to sign up with them eventhough they admitted they caused the issue in the first place. BT has a monopoly and it needs to be broken up for the UK to progress simple as that IMHO.

I read an interesting article a while back about a company that was laying fibre-optic cable down drains and sewers etc on the basis that it was quicker and cheaper than digging up all the roads.

All hail British genius (and laziness).

I agree untill the govrnment turns round and says you must do this we will be langishing in ever dropping speeds.

Don't get me started on BT.
On the one hand, my home account that earns them about £9 per month is problem free.
Yet our work business account that we paid through the nose for may as well been a wet bit of string.

The only help we ever got over the phone was 'try a new filter' or 'turn it off then on again' - what, like we did yesterday?

Each time an engineer came out he'd tell us that it was the line or the exchange and that, yes, although that was BT as well it was a different part of BT and he couldn't do anything about it.

Eventually we threatened them with legal action and when they phoned back to ask us to try a different filter, we changed suppliers. Then they tried to fine us for early cancellation.