Where will demand for next-gen broadband come from?

Figuring out what will create demand for next-generation broadband is vital to its actual deployment, it has been claimed.

Some web hosting users are sure to be excited by the prospect of superfast broadband, which was recently discussed at the Westminster eForum keynote seminar the Future of Broadband in the UK at Over-seas House, London.

At the event, Roger Darlington, member for England at the Communications Consumer Panel, suggested that the communications industry needs to find out what individuals and organisations would actually want to use such networks for.

Talking about broadband in general, Mr Darlington commented: "We still fall very far short of what most of us envisage as a real broadband-enabled nation."

He noted that a quarter of homes in this country remain without an internet connection at any speed.

Mr Darlington also questioned how next-generation networks would be funded and if the regulatory framework around it should incentivise and promote them.

Written by Jermaine Jones.