UK Digital Strategy pledges to boost broadband and data speeds for faster streaming

The UK government has set out its digital strategy for post-Brexit Britain, promising to improve broadband and data connection speeds, making for better quality streaming.

In its 'Connectivity' document, it says that broadband and mobile "must be treated as the fourth utility" after water, gas and electricity. It says that 90 per cent of UK premises can currently access superfast broadband, and that this should reach 95 per cent by the end of this year.

An additional 600,000 premises should benefit by 2020, which will mean more homes are equipped for streaming 4K video and hi-res audio.

Mobile coverage is set to improve too, making it easier to stream on the go. By the end of the year, 98 per cent of the UK should have 4G data coverage, with 98 per cent of UK premises having indoor 4G coverage from at least one operator.

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In the Autumn Statement, the government pledged £740m to roll out next-generation 5G services. It will announce the full 5G strategy in next week's Spring Budget.

The government is also investing £400m in a new Digital Infrastructure Investment Fund, to help roll out full fibre broadband with speeds in excess of 100Mb. It expects that sum to be at least be matched by private investors.

The document predicts that, by the end of 2018, 90 per cent of passenger journeys on Department for Transport-franchised train lines will have wi-fi.

It sounds like good news for streaming fans. But is it enough, or are we falling behind other countries? Let us know in the comments.

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Joe Svetlik

Joe has been writing about tech for 17 years, first on staff at T3 magazine, then in a freelance capacity for Stuff, The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, Men's Health, GQ, The Mirror, Trusted Reviews, TechRadar and many more (including What Hi-Fi?). His specialities include all things mobile, headphones and speakers that he can't justifying spending money on.