Average UK broadband speeds on the up, claim Ofcom

The UK's average broadband speed has risen by five per cent between November 2013 and May 2014 to 18.7 Mbit/s, according to Ofcom's calculations.

The regulator's research into the UK's average residential broadband speeds also revealed that cable-based services are now delivering faster speeds than fibre connections.

The findings, based on measurements taken during the six months to May 2014, show the UK's average cable broadband speeds hit 43.3 Mbit/s, while the average speed for fibre connections was just 42 Mbit/s. This marks the first time the former has overtaken the latter.

The uptick in cable-based broadband speeds has been attributed to a shift in customers opting to upgrade to faster services.

During the same time period, fibre broadband speeds fell by 0.9 Mbit/s to 42 Mbit/s, which Ofcom has put down to more customers favouring packages that offer speeds of up to 38 Mbit/s, rather than up to 76 Mbit/s.

Overall, Virgin Media clocked up the fastest average download speed during the six-month tracking period, with its up to 152 Mbit/s cable service offering speeds of around 141.9 Mbit/s.

BT was in second place, with its up to 76 Mbit/s fibre package, which was clocked delivering average download speeds of around 62 Mbit/s.

Ofcom's findings have been welcomed by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), particularly digital economy minister Ed Vaizey.

The DCMS is responsible for overseeing various initiatives aimed at improving access to superfast broadband network resources across the country.

"I'm delighted to say that these findings, whilst fantastic news, are not unexpected," said Vaizey in a statement.

"Government has taken access to superfast broadband speeds to more than one million homes and businesses across the UK through our nationwide rollout, which has been instrumental in average speeds increasing by more than three and a half times since May 2010."

However, Ewan Taylor-Gibson, a broadband expert from comparison site uSwitch.com, said the findings aren't good news for everyone.

"Average speeds might be rising but, in some parts of the country, UK broadband services are still as temperamental as a stubborn mule and fibre speeds are even slowing," Taylor-Gibson said.

"It's a worry, as it suggests these may get slower as more Brits make the switch to faster fibre services."