If 2009 was the Year of Agony and 2010 could be the Year of Hope

Who else could have given a more apt testimony on the passing year; 2009, than the British Queen herself? More, what if she has given a statement on this context that looked like some years are better forgotten, while others left the people with a feeling of content. Although the Queen, being the Armed Forces’ titular head, strongly stressed the tragic casualties faced by the soldiers of the United Kingdom fighting in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, her main point relevant here was apparently the persisting ill-effects of the economical downturn.

Broadband Sector

While we discuss the economical recession that first showed its ugly face in the final quarter of the year 2008, we simply cannot neglect the part played by the broadband internet sector of the country in either freeing the nation from the mires or worsening the situation. Whatsoever, one definitely cannot say that the broadband sector of the United Kingdom, in any way ended up in exacerbating the dire economic condition prevailing in the country. On the other hand, as the increasing numbers of freshly conceived technologies pertinent to the sector were making their way to the fore, the development coincided with the emergence of more employment opportunities.

Alongside, the tremendous competition that prevailed in the broadband market of the UK had, in its turn, caused the broadband providers to come up with more value for money home and business broadband packages that have helped the businesses in the country considerably. Meanwhile, the households benefited from this outcome by more engaging in the latest job trend of ‘work from home’. It cannot be deprecated if someone says that the ‘work from home’ concept was the offspring of the unholy partnership between the economic downturn and the swine flu pandemic. The only disappointment here – if it can be called that – is the reality that any kind of Universal Broadband rollout would only be realized in the country by 2017.

Nonetheless, the main hope that has been packed in the broadband internet parcel is the recently started next generation fibre optic broadband internet service roll out across the country. It is anticipated that the fresh rollout would pack broadband internet access speeds of up to 100Mbps, which is perfect for the latest bandwidth hungry applications such as video on demand and TV on demand (Online TV).

Mobile Broadband

It is quite apparent that the mobile broadband service was one of the most profound services put forward by this decade. As a matter of fact, the introduction of this technology nicety had given a pleasant surprise for the broadband internet consumers in the country. This service that at present, actively compliments the mobile phone service has also settled as an economic communications option. Today, many more mobile broadband providers have come to the frontline by launching their own mobile broadband dongles, as previously this was an exclusive playground for the five prominent mobile operators in the United Kingdom; O2, Vodafone, 3UK, T-Mobile and Orange. Something that has potentially complimented this technology is the development of a mobile WiFi (MiFi) wireless mobile broadband service.

Moreover, if the Labour government of the United Kingdom comes out successfully resolving the issue of the radio spectrum re-allotment, it would in its turn result in the country being provided remarkable coverage, particularly in the rural areas of the UK where the fixed-line broadband suppliers were struggling to provide broadband connections. This would end up in saving the country from a devastating Digital Divide. Such a development would be of considerable significance, when it is complimented by the rollout of the latest Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology-based services that delivered access speeds of up to 40Mbps, as against the fastest speed of 14Mbps (headline speed) offered by the ISPs of the present.

Satellite Broadband

The other option is the satellite broadband service that could be a viable one, to boost the communications scenario of the country in the next decade. Here, a good part depends on the successes of Avanti Communications UK as it has announced its raising enough cash to fund the procurement, launch and functioning of Hylas 2, its future broadband satellite. It is also worth mentioning here that all these hasve taken place before the launch of Avanti’s first satellite; Hylas 1, which is due for launch in quarter 2010. Meanwhile, the second more powerful satellite of the operator that comes with a capacity of 8280MHz as against the 3000 MHz capacity of its predecessor would be launched in the first hemi of the year 2012. It is also interesting that the satellite is being procured from the US-based Orbital Sciences Corporation and the launch service, from France’s Arianespace.

The significance of the upcoming satellite boom in the United Kingdom is that it is capable to fill the existing demand in the country for around hundred million satellite broadband internet connections. Another refreshing news in the sphere is that Inmarsat, the mobile satellite operator based in the United Kingdom is all set to start providing Russia with mobile satellite services in 2010. Inmarsat plans to tie up with the Russian Airlines service Aeroflot to provide airlines broadband service on Aeroflot aircraft during flights.

Other Important Predictions

The broadband enabled television is of course one of the prime things expected by the television savvy broadband internet consumers in the country. This has been deemed for a long time as a potential alternative for or the future itself of the television. The concept has even been given a name – The Project Canvas. This is alll about an IPTV venture supported by BT, ITV, BBC, Five, Channel 4 and TalkTalk. This service is also dubbed as Freeview II, where an internet connection comes packed with the Freeview set top box. This service has been boasted as one that enables the customers to enjoy the website of BBC and its iPlayer-like offerings. If hearsay can be believed, the partners are also signing contracts to rope in outsider content such as LoveFilm as well to the service.

Another writing on the wall, and so intriguing is the fact that real time social communication websites such as Twitter and Facebook are here to stay. This is more than evident from the knowledge that Twitter was beginning to charge business firms for using it and Bing and Google were planning to accommodate tweets in their search results.

Finally, another vital development that can be witnessed as well as experienced by the broadband using public of the United Kingdom is the emergence of a comprehensive and compact wireless broadband network across the nation, with stress laid on community based WiFi hotspots that can, to a great extent, serve in the eradication of broadband notspots across the country.