GWS finds UK homes experience inadequate connectivity

LONDON – With the country still in the midst of a second national lockdown, leading mobile network benchmarking firm Global Wireless Solutions (GWS) has today released the results of its latest major study into real-life consumer experiences of home internet connections in the UK, which uncovers evidence of a stark ‘digital divide’ in the UK. As more people come to rely on video for working and communicating with family, friends and colleagues, nearly a third (30%) are suffering from inadequate throughputs – download speeds lower than 2 Mbps or upload speeds lower than 1 Mbps. Further, according to Ofcom, speeds higher than 10 Mbps for download and 1 Mbps for upload is considered a "decent" broadband service; using this criterion only 64% of homes have "decent" service.

The extensive study involved GWS testing the speeds of home internet connections in over 2,000 households along with conducting in-depth consumer research into how home internet performance has impacted people over the course of the pandemic. The study primarily involves ISPs, as almost all (89%) of the homes tested and surveyed use their home broadband network to connect to the internet, as opposed to their mobile network.

Divided and feeling isolated

The findings from the study suggest that there is a noticeable 'digital divide' in the UK, with inequalities of home internet performance impeding some consumers' abilities to work and stay 'connected' during the ongoing pandemic and lockdown periods. When connected to their home internet, 62% of all respondents reported experiencing a range of issues from being unable to load websites, stream videos or connect to video conferences. Due to these problems, over half (52%) of the respondents claimed they felt isolated at some point during the first national lockdown.

Internet inequalities for home workers

While business offices likely ensure a level playing field when it comes to internet bandwidth, home offices have uncovered inequalities that are negatively impacting professional lives. Half of the respondents admit to feeling 'judged' about their competency if their network doesn’t hold up when speaking to colleagues in a work setting from home. The findings suggest that this is not just about feeling incompetent, as over a third of respondents (37%) admitted they also question their colleague’s competence when they see them suffering from connectivity issues; this figure increased to over a half (55%) in Greater London, suggesting that those in the capital are less tolerant of connection issues.

As the country's reliance on video conferencing has grown, people are most likely to worry about network performance on video or voice calls, as 34% have had problems with video calling and conferencing over the last few months. Moreover, just over 1 out of 10 admitted that they have had a colleague comment on their poor connection during a voice or video call (this increases to nearly 2 out of 10 among the younger workers aged 18 to 24). But the data shows that video calling is here to stay, as the majority of the people in the UK (65%) intend to continue using video calling platforms after the technology's prolific rise this year.

Can 5G help narrow the divide?

The study also found that while those in urban areas were more likely to feel isolated by poor home internet connectivity, rural respondents were more likely to do something about it. 60% of urbanites admitted they felt unable to communicate effectively with others at some points during this year, yet this was the case for only 43% living in rural areas. In terms of addressing these issues, just over a quarter (27%) of all respondents would change providers if problems persisted, increasing to 39% for respondents living in rural areas. People are also relying increasingly on the availability of their mobile signal at home. When experiencing poor connectivity during a video call, 20% of all consumers said that they will switch from their WiFi to their mobile network.

The study reveals that some consumers are also optimistic about the promise of 5G, as over a quarter (26%) think that 5G will help fix the nation’s 'digital divide' in the future. This figure increased to 34% for those living in urban areas.

Global Wireless Solutions, Inc.