Universal Broadband can boost Online Retail Sales

A freshly carried out study has suggested that 2Mbps broadband for all plan projected by the Labour government in its Digital Britain report could potentially trigger a significant surge in the retail sales over the internet.

According to the research, the widespread broadband internet availability in the United Kingdom brought about by the 2Mbps broadband for all plan - otherwise known as Universal Broadband - could have a great impact on business firms in the country with an online presence.

The research was carried out by IPA (Institution of Practitioners in Advertising), which held the view that the boosting of broadband internet coverage in the country through the universal broadband service commitment of the government could within one year generate an extra GBP 1.4 billion.

It was also revealed that those people that still relied on dial up internet were thirty per cent more likely to purchase products online if provided with high-speed broadband internet alternatives.

Meanwhile, All Media Scotland reported IPA as saying that the figures were based on a study carried out by the National Statistics Office.

The news source added that the figures showed that although the sales over the websites in 2008 totalled GBP 104.7 billion, 4.9 per cent of the internet users in the United Kingdom were still depending on sluggish dial up internet connections.