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When broadband first appeared, it seemed that it would be available to everyone in the country. Sadly, as the years have gone by it's proved that this is not the case.

People living in the more rural areas of Britain are paying the same amount for their service, yet in many cases are getting much slower connection speeds due to the lack of exchanges in close proximity to their homes. This is assuming they can get a connection at all - there are still parts of the UK that aren't equipped for broadband at all.

But living far away from an exchange isn't the only thing to affect connection speed. Someone living just 1 mile from their local exchange could have the same low speed as someone living 3 or 4 miles from the same one. The quality of phone line and your existing hardware can also be a factor in slow broadband.

The technology watchdog Ofcom is aiming to get broadband providers to provide line checks and approximate connection speeds to potential users before signing them up. It's been proven that the maximum speed advertised is often much higher than the actual speed most customers get. Consequently, consumers are up in arms about having to pay full price for half service, particularly those in the areas of the country who cannot get a decent connection speed. They are paying the same price for their meagre 1.4Mbps as someone with a (rare) 6.9Mbps connection speed.

Unfortunately, the situation doesn't look like it will get resolved in the near future. It's been estimated that the more remote parts of the country could be waiting up to a decade for a broadband connection comparable to even the slower ones in an urban area, and the ones who do get a connection may never get the speed advertised to them by their provider. As a result, people are paying more than they can afford for more expensive packages, when they'd get the same speed from a cheap broadband tariff.

Providers take note: offer an individual tariff based on a personal connection speed rather than an unattainable maximum. You'll be swamped with sign-ups.

Want broadband? Find cheap broadband by comparing broadband providers online.

J Tillotson is a UK author specialising in technology and communications.