Sky has announced it will now start using average broadband speed ratings when advertising its internet packages, as it launches a new discount on its Fibre deal.
The new speed ratings are taken from Ofcom’s UK fixed-line broadband performance report from March 2016, and should give customers a better idea of what speed they’re likely to get with a particular package.
It’s a positive development as far as customers are concerned, as current guidelines state that companies can use “up to” speeds, which only need to represent the speed that 10% of customers can expect to reach.
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Sky seems to getting ahead of the game here, as the Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP), which informs the guidance set by the Advertising Standards Agency, is currently reviewing guidance on broadband speed claims.
It’s all aimed at making broadband ads clearer and more transparent, as research has shown most customers believe the “up to” speed is what they’re actually getting when they sign up.
In that sense, Sky’s taking a bit of risk, and seems to be trying to pre-empt its rivals taking a similar decision to switch to average speeds.
Alongside the new average speed advertising, Sky has launched what it’s calling “the UK’s lowest fibre broadband and line rental offer”.
Starting today, new and existing Sky customers can sign up for the Sky Fibre package for £20 per month plus a one-off setup fee of £19.95, which gets you 34MB average UK speeds, but comes with a monthly usage allowance of 25GB.
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Unfortunately, if you’re a new customer, you’ll need to sign up to an 18-month Sky TV contract to get the discounted rate, but considering the usual monthly price is £27.40 and the setup fee usually costs £59.95, it’s a decent saving.
If, however, you’re already a Sky TV customer, you can sign up to the Fibre package at the discounted rate right now.
And just to top off the broadband-related developments, Sky has also introduced a new “Tech Team”, which it says is a “specialist broadband customer service” made up of specially trained staff.
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Let us what you think of Sky’s decision to use average broadband speeds in the comments.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.