[Merged] Finally [OFCOM investigating misleading speeds in adverts]

[danjw]

OFCOM is monitoring ISP's misadvertising speeds

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6924866.stm

[Mr_love_monkey]

I'd be more impressed if they started monitoring ISPs usage of the work 'unlimited'

[Web-Junkie]

From the BBC:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6924866.stm

Sorry if this has already been posted!

[themelon]

Lets hope this stops the blitz of Adverts claiming 8Mb, 16mb and 24Mbs.

Really it should be enforced that the provider must offer the advertised speed to more than half its customers or they should not be able to advertise it.

Sky keep ringing me and telling me that I can get faster broadband with them.....I know I cant as ive used ADSL before on my line and struggle to get 1Mb.

Something needs to be done.

If they could sort out the network cable would have a massive advantage as they can offer top speeds to almost everyone in an area if things are properley maintained, segmented and upgraded (unfortunately due to the lack of satff they arent)

[kirk1690]

bbc news today reported that there may be an investigation by the office of fair trading into the difference between advertised broadband speeds and actual speeds,, they reported that advertised speeds never compare with customer speed tests.. tell us somethin we dont know..... virgin 20 meg between 2 and 6 in morning rest of the day around 4 to 8 is what an HONEST advert would say.. dont hold your breath

[Web-Junkie]

Ofcom told the BBC News website that it was monitoring the situation.

"If we get increasing complaints we may look at what more can be done. We are working closely with the ASA and it is very important that consumers know what they are getting and what they are paying for," said an Ofcom spokeswoman.

So if people keep complaining about the speed they get against the advertised "up to" speed then OFCOM will have to do something, and going by the following statement:

A BT spokesman confirmed that 8Mbps would be a rarity for users.

"Virtually no-one will get it. The laws of physics start applying as soon as it leaves the exchange and you would have to live on top of the exchange to get the full 8 megabits," he said.

So why are they still allowed to advertise a speed they know full well that "Virtually no-one will get it"?

[Toto]

Originally Posted by kirk1690

bbc news today reported that there may be an investigation by the office of fair trading into the difference between advertised broadband speeds and actual speeds,, they reported that advertised speeds never compare with customer speed tests.. tell us somethin we dont know..... virgin 20 meg between 2 and 6 in morning rest of the day around 4 to 8 is what an HONEST advert would say.. dont hold your breath

The article actually seemed bias against DSL suppliers. The telling comment came from a BT spokesman when referring to 8Mbps speeds:

"Virtually no-one will get it. The laws of physics start applying as soon as it leaves the exchange and you would have to live on top of the exchange to get the full 8 megabits," he said.

Full article here.

[Chrysalis]

Originally Posted by Web-Junkie

From the BBC:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6924866.stm

Sorry if this has already been posted!

Ofcom will be well aware the current situation although at times they seem very misinformed, part of their remit is to not damage business interests which they probably would be doing by doing something about this problem so I doubt ofcom will do anything about the problem.

ASA are the ones who really should have done something about it in terms of advertising they need to get over this thing they have about advertising been ok as long as it applies to a majority. It should apply to everyone to be legal.

[ikthius]

I think they should advertise, what the minimum speed actually is, and if you get above that then thats a bonus.

or state a min and max speed on a certain tier

ik

[xpod]

I think they should advertise, what the minimum speed actually is, and if you get above that then thats a bonus.

Two chances of that i think........little and none
It`s like looking at all the lovely food packaging.....you get home and open it up only to find it`s not quite what it seemed to be.

[themelon]

Originally Posted by Chrysalis

ASA are the ones who really should have done something about it in terms of advertising they need to get over this thing they have about advertising been ok as long as it applies to a majority. It should apply to everyone to be legal.

I dont think the advertising does apply to the majority though.

To be honest only a select few as in BTs own words 'Live on top of the exchange' will ever be able to get the 8Mb, 16Mb and 24Mbs Headlines Advertised by the likes of Sky and BE.

If this is the case something needs to be done.

I dont know anyone who gets over 6mb on ADSL, they are alll amazed when I say I get 9Mb most of the time.

Using speedtest.net you can see the average UK speed is less than 3.5mb and, the mainstream provider with the fastest average is BE who offer 8Mbs, not even half of what they advertise.

Most cable customers are on the 2Mb and 4Mb packages, with the different tiers is difficult to get a clear indication of the true average speeds on cable, the nature of this website is that most users will be having problems, so its difficult to attain from this. I would say cable speeds are currently falling due to them sacking network techs and outsourcing it to muppets, and trying to bleed speeds out of a network with unsufficient upgrades, things will blatently fall over. Everyone can see that except for the ex ntl management who should be the ones with their P45s.

They should only be allowed to advertise the Average speed attained. And Good for those who get more if they live next to the exchange.

---------- Post added at 10:14 ---------- Previous post was at 10:02 ----------

Originally Posted by Toto

The article actually seemed bias against DSL suppliers. The telling comment came from a BT spokesman when referring to 8Mbps speeds:


Full article here.

At least BT should be commended for being honest. They know the limits of their archaic copper network.

[Chrysalis]

Themelon indeed, they got away with the up to 8meg because it supposedbly caters for anything between 0 and 8mbit which is another joke.

[ntluser]

Maybe the simple answer is to have some kind of meter built into a modem so it displays the speed used for receiving and transmitting by the second. Then maybe Virgin could use a per second billing system which charges you for the quality of service you are actually getting not the one advertised. Better still, there could be some form of broadband tachograph built into the modem so that an independent agency could monitor the quality of service. I suspect then that the advertising might have to change and bills could be cheaper.

[scrotnig]

At least BT should be commended for being honest. They know the limits of their archaic copper network.

They are NOT being honest since they still stae up to 8mb in their adverts, despite knowing that nobody will actually get that speed.

Far from being honest, by making that comment they are acknowledging that they are liars.

[themelon]

Originally Posted by scrotnig

They are NOT being honest since they still stae up to 8mb in their adverts, despite knowing that nobody will actually get that speed.

Far from being honest, by making that comment they are acknowledging that they are liars.

At least they have admitted they are liars unlike BE and Sky who are still telling us we will get 16Mb and 24Mb speeds which are a pipedream unless you happen to squat in the exchange.

Luckily I dont appear to have been upgraded to 10Mb yet and am still getting a pretty consistent 8-9Mb. Im not looking forward to being 'upgraded' reading some of the comments on here.