ALMOST one in five rural premises in the north remain without access to a decent broadband service, according to new Ofcom figures.
The regulator's latest Connection Nations report has revealed that around 17 per cent of rural premises in Northern Ireland (37,000) can not receive the accepted minimum industry speed, compared to less than 1 per cent in urban areas.
The problem is particularly prevalent in the Fermanagh and Omagh Council area, where 19 per cent cannot access 10Mbit/s download and 1Mbit/s upload speeds, while a significant number of premises in the Mid Ulster (11 per cent) and Newry, Mourne and Down Council (8 per cent) regions also fall into this category
Overall around 5 per cent of properties (40,000) in the north are unable to access broadband speeds needed to meet a typical household’s needs, but the figure has fallen significantly over the year from the 55,000 recorded in 2017.
The availability of superfast broadband (download speed of 30Mbit/s or more) in Northern Ireland has increased from 86 per cent last year to now cover 89 per cent of premises.
However availability is below the UK average (94 per cent) and as expected is lower in rural areas of the north, where just 67 per cent of premises have access to a superfast service.
Coverage of ‘ultrafast’ broadband (300Mbit/s and above) in Northern Ireland has risen to 38 per cent of properties, from 25 per cent last year, largely as a result of continued upgrades by Virgin Media to its high-speed network.
There has also been a significant increase in the number of premises passed by full-fibre networks, with the rate of 12 per cent access the highest of the UK nations.
Jonathan Rose, Ofcom Northern Ireland director welcomed the improvement in internet access, but believes there is much work still to be done.
“Fast, reliable internet access, wherever you live and work, is essential," he said.
" This report underlines the good work taking place to increase the availability of faster broadband services in Northern Ireland.
“However, there are still significant numbers of properties in rural areas that don’t have access to decent broadband. It’s therefore vital there is further action to ensure people in these areas aren’t left behind.”
In relation to mobile phone coverage 88 per cent of the north's geographic area is now covered by all four operators for telephone calls, compared to 80 per cent last year.
Outdoor and indoor access to data through 4G has also improved over the year to an average of 79 per cent.
However, as with broadband, coverage is less extensive in rural areas.
