Mixed broadband experience for many customers in Cork survey finds

NATIONAL Broadband Ireland (NBI) has said new research shows a mismatch between levels of satisfaction and experience of broadband performance among respondents.

The company rolling out the National Broadband Plan (NBP) commissioned Core Research to undertake research among members of the public who are living within the NBP Intervention Area and will therefore be served by the NBI high speed fibre network but who have not yet availed of a connection.

The research showed that out of 231 surveyed (59 of whom are from Cork), overall two in three are satisfied with speed and reliability, with only slightly lower satisfaction among those remote working, yet 84% have experienced at least one of a range of connectivity issues.

These include: patchy internet coverage (72%), slow downloads (65%), poor signal during busy periods in the home (62%), internet dropout (63%), buffering (59%), having to turn camera off in online meetings (33%), and commuting to office to avoid working from home (27%).

NBI Chief Executive Officer, Peter Hendrick, said: “The aim of NBI and the Irish Government is for more and more people to avail of high-speed fibre, and the research we commissioned shows there is still a gap in public understanding of the quality of reliability and speed which is now becoming available, which could see people missing out on the benefits of high-speed broadband.

“The research, among 231 people who are resident in the National Broadband Plan Intervention Area but have not yet availed of a connection, showed that more than 4 in 5 respondents experienced at least one of a range of broadband connectivity issues and yet 2 in 3 are satisfied with speed and reliability.

“This suggests some people may be settling for less because of a lack of awareness of the increasing availability and much better performance of high-speed fibre broadband.” 

In Cork, NBI is making a €314m investment to bring fibre to 82,000 premises across the county.

At this point in the rollout, over 24,000 premises (including over 2,000 in Youghal, 9,500 in Midleton, 4,700 in Carrigaline and 6,400 in Templemartin) have been passed by the high speed fibre network and can connect to NBI broadband.

Over 8,000 of those have connected so far, which is in line with the average take-up rate nationally.