The need for speed

New broadband rankings seem to appear all the time, but here’s one with a difference. Instead of measuring current broadband capability, the Economist Intelligence Unit’s gBBi (for government broadband index) takes a look at public-sector planning amid a surge of government interest in the issue of broadband access. The results are revealing.

Perhaps the biggest surprise is just how badly Australia scores in the new index. Having unveiled a hugely ambitious public-sector broadband plan in April 2009, authorities will be disappointed to rank in the bottom half of the index. The huge cost to the public sector of Australia’s plan – at 7.6% of annual government budget revenues – saw it penalised in the gBBi.

The chart below is a pared-down version of one in the full report, comparing countries on speed and coverage targets, as well public-sector funding per household covered. Essentially, the further along both axes, and the smaller the bubble, the better. With ambitious goals for the speed and coverage of its next-generation network, but a low public-sector cost per household covered, South Korea is the clear leader.