Ofcom has just released a major report which concludes that UK is one of the most advanced countries in terms of overall digital communications, with a high penetration of digital TV and high usage of mobile telephony - but slow average broadband speeds.

Only 10% of UK broadband homes have access to broadband speeds of over 8 Mbs, compared with 37% in the Netherlands. And the average broadband speed in the UK is just over 4 Mbs. This compares to an average broadband speed of over 90 Mbs in Japan for example.

The OECD report put the UK 21st out of 30 countries in terms of broadband speeds, reflecting the low proportion of fibre-optic broadband households in the UK. Virgin media is currently the only top broadband provider in the Uk able to offer ultra-fast fibre optic broadband packages of up to 50 Mbs. The majority of Uk broadband households therefore rely on slower DSL broadband connections (via the copper home phone lines).

The UK Government recently set a goal of 90% of the country to have access to super-fast fibre-optic broadband by the end of 2017.

The UK fares better in other digital areas. Indeed, as Digital Switchover (DSO) continues to rumble on, the UK already has the highest proportion of households with digital TV on their main set - at 88%. And the wide choice of programming enabled by digital TV means that UK digital TV viewers now watch nearly 4 hours of TV per day (3.8 hours), as compared to an average of 3.5 hours per day across other European countries surveyed.

If you would like help to compare broadband deals and compare digital T packages from all the top UK providers, why not speak to the Simplifydigital experts on 0800 1 388 388 or try our online broadband and digital TV comparison service.