Broadband networks can cope with Olympics demand, says Cabinet Office
Broadband networks can cope with Olympics demand, says Cabinet Office
The Government says it believes broadband services can cope with the additional demands anticipated during the Olympics.
The Cabinet Office had previously urged businesses to have a back-up plan in place in case ISPs failed or imposed temporary download caps. The Cabinet Office's Preparing Your Business For The Games report, published in February, said, "In very severe cases there may be drop-outs due to an increased number of people accessing the internet. In addition, ISPs may introduce data caps during peak times to try and spread the loading and give a more equal service to their entire customer base."
However, it has now said it believes that sufficient provisions have been put in place to prevent any problems.
A spokesperson for the Cabinet Office told the BBC, "The situation has moved on considerably since the advice for businesses was published."
They added, "We do not now believe there is likely to be any impact on the UK internet infrastructure during the Olympic Games. We are still advising companies to speak to their internet service providers about the internet capacity within their buildings.”
The Cabinet Office said that if lots of employees are livestreaming events at work, network speeds could be affected.
The news has been welcomed by business groups such as the Federation of Small Businesses. The FSB’s national chairman, John Walker, said internet problems during the Olympics could have been "disastrous" for small companies.
However, the group also called for the faster roll-out of high-speed broadband for businesses, especially in rural areas. A recent FSB survey found that 48 per cent of businesses in urban areas are dissatisfied with their broadband speed, increasing to 63 per cent for those in the countryside.
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