Town and country digital divide could widen in the UK

The so-called "digital divide" between rural and urban areas in the UK is likely to widen further before it narrows, according to Ed Richards, chief executive of Ofcom, as city dwellers benefit from a wider choice of broadband providers and Internet service providers are likely to invest in urban areas first. In a report published on Tuesday, Ofcom said that average download speeds in rural areas were half those in urban areas, at just 2.7 megabits per second compared to an average 5.8Mbit/s in urban areas.