Telecoms watchdog Oftel claims that, based on figures released
today, consumers are feeling the benefits of a competitive telecoms
market, that almost 50% of the UK adult population now uses the
internet and that 200,000 businesses have gone on-line in the last
quarter. Oftel also reports that the average quarterly spend on
fixed-line telephone services fell by £5 between May and August
2001.
David Edmonds, Director General of Telecommunications, said:
"Our research shows that UK consumers are taking advantage of the
wide range of competitive telecoms services on offer and are making
savings on their phone bill. With so much choice available, greater
consumer awareness about price and quality is needed so that even
more people can benefit from the competition that exists in the
market.”
However, it appears that rural consumers awaiting broadband
internet access will feel no such benefits. BTopenworld has just
announced pricing details for its broadband satellite service. For
a single PC to be connected to the service, consumers will be
charged £69.99 per month in addition to a connection charge of
£899.
