A number of OECD countries have already drawn up proposals for clearly defined objectives regarding how investments in broadband are to contribute to economic growth in terms of jobs and business start-ups. In addition, several countries – in connection with the financial crisis – have now raised the level of ambition for public undertakings even further. There is a lack of Swedish counterparts to such objectives, which may have an impact on Sweden’s long-term competitiveness.
Significantly greater ambitions in other countries
In Finland, the Government has proposed that all households shall have access to 1 Mbits per second by the year 2010. The corresponding proposal in the United Kingdom is at 2 Mbits per second. What has been established in Sweden is a minimum level known as ‘functional access to the Internet’, which is at 20 kbits per second, that is, 2 per cent of the capacity proposed in Finland. Finland has also formulated an objective and a strategy for how most of the population shall, by 2015, live a maximum of 2 kilometres from an exchange point offering 100 Mbits per second.
“Sweden has come far in the broadband sector. However, for us to continue to assert ourselves in the global arena, it is high time that we formulate Sweden’s long-term objectives. The minimum level for access to the Internet also needs to be raised. Requiring only 20 kbits per second, when the level of ambition in other countries is much higher, is unsustainable if we want to be a world-class IT nation,” says Marianne Treschow, Director-General of PTS.
Municipal authorities should be granted more responsibility
Apart from formulating a long-term national level of ambition, it is also important to focus especially on the role of municipal authorities. The report shows that there are great disparities between municipalities when it comes to people’s access to broadband. Accessibility at a local level is promoted if the Government grants municipal authorities more responsibility to stimulate the rollout of infrastructure in the broadband sector. This does not necessarily mean that such rollout needs to be conducted by municipal authorities.
In the past few years, PTS has been monitoring the broadband sector in Sweden, and the 2008 survey shows that there has been expansive rollout of broadband via the mobile networks and that the number of households and businesses with access to a broadband connection through fibre networks increased by over 300 000 in the past year. Despite this rollout, the survey shows that nearly 4 400 households and businesses still lack basic prerequisites for broadband. This is virtually twice the number since the previous year.
PTS is now investigating the cost of raising the minimum level (functional access to the Internet) from 20 kbits per second to 144 kbits per second to ensure that all people in Sweden can utilise basic and vital public services on the Internet.
The report ‘Broadband Survey 2008’ (only in Swedish)
For more information, please contact:
Stefan Williamson, head of Market Analysis, tel: 0708-114 053
PTS's Press Office, tel: 08-678 55 55
The Swedish Post and Telecom Agency (PTS) monitors the electronic communications and postal sectors in Sweden. The term ‘electronic communications’ includes telephony, the Internet and radio. The Agency works with consumer and competition issues, efficient utilisation of resources and secure communications. Read more at www.pts.se.