FURTHER EVIDENCE OF DIGITAL DIVIDE REINFORCES NEED FOR DIGITAL DIVIDEND - MOORE

8.51.31am GMT Sun 8th Jun 2008

Borders MP Michael Moore has said that the publication of a national survey of broadband download speeds, which shows vast differences across the country, reinforces the need for a dividend to be awarded from the auction of the analogue spectrum to close the technology gap between rural and urban areas.

Mr Moore has been pressing the communications regulator Ofcom to allocate a proportion of the billions that will be raised from the sale of the airwaves freed-up by digital television switchover to be spent specifically on closing the digital divide. Such uses could include: improved and more accessible broadband technology; a wider range of digital television channels for viewers who rely on relay transmitters; high-speed mobile services; local television stations; interactive television and high definition television.

Despite a growing body of evidence which shows that rural areas are losing out on digital and broadband services, including today's survey of broadband speeds published by Thinkbroadband.com, the communications regulator Ofcom are adopting a purely market-led approach to the sale of the spectrum, which Mr Moore believes will result in the digital divide growing even further. He said:

"There is absolutely no doubt that one of the primary reasons the Borders has been chosen to go through the digital television switchover process first is because we are a rural area. While I accept this, I also believe it is only right that, as pioneers for switchover, we are compensated by being provided with the same digital services as those enjoyed elsewhere.

"Sadly, we are a long way from this being realised. Many digital radio stations remain unavailable to us, broadband connections in a lot of areas are slow or non-existent, and those who receive their television signal from a relay transmitter will only receive half the Freeview package.

"Local people will simply find this unacceptable, particularly as billions of pounds will be raised out of the digital television switchover process. Surely it is not too much to ask for us to receive a small fraction of this revenue to bring us up to speed with people in other parts of the UK."