Finland has proposed increasing the minimum broadband speed under universal service requirements to 2 Mbps, from 1 Mbps currently. In October, the Ministry of Transport and Communications commissioned a report from regulator Ficora on the state of universal service and the availability of broadband speeds. The report shows widespread availability of higher speeds thanks to the roll-out of mobile and fibre networks in recent years.
According to Ficora, 81 percent of homes and businesses could receive at least 30 Mbps over the fixed network at the end of 2014. Just over half (53%) could receive fibre broadband, up by 4 percent from 2013. Mobile broadband networks at 30 Mbps or higher covered 95 percent of the population, an increase of about 12 percent from 2013.
The increased availability supports the increase in the universal service speed, which should give every Finn the right to a connection able to support basic services such as online banking and media access, the ministry said. Under the proposed decree, minimum quality requirements would also be introduced for universal broadband service, including a minimum speed over intervals of a day.
Finland has included broadband in the universal service since 2010. In areas where high-quality, reasonably priced broadband is not available, the state designates a universal service provider which must be able to provide the service to all homes and businesses in the area.
By the end of 2014, Ficora had distributed EUR 46 million in state subsidies to increase the availability of fibre broadband, especially in sparsely populated rural areas. In 2008, the Finnish government set a target for broadband at 100 Mbps to be available to nearly all Finns by the end of 2015. Including EU funds, a total EUR 130 million was budgeted for expanding access to broadband.
