Access to Broadband Internet Connection – A Legal Right In Finland

Access to Broadband Internet Connection – A Legal Right In Finland

Finland has become the first country to enshrine legal rights for broadband to every citizen. Effective July 1, 2010, Finns have the right to access a 1Mbps (megabit per second) broadband connection. Existing telecommunications companies will be obliged to provide Finns with broadband lines accordingly. High speed internet has been identified as a priority for the government and it has promised to provide the entire population a 100Mbps connection by 2015.

Currently, close to 96 per cent of the population has access to the internet and following the new law, close to 4,000 homes will need to be connected. The law aims to bring the Web to rural areas, where geographic challenges have resulted in limited access until now. However, the ruling would make it difficult for the authorities to tackle people who share files illegally. To deal with citizens who are breaking piracy laws, the government will be sending letters as opposed to restricted access to the Internet.

According to Laura Vilkkonen, the legislative counselor for the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the one-megabit mandate is an intermediary step as Finland aims to provide speeds 100 times faster than that, 100 megabit per second by 2015. Vilkkonen believes that the Internet has become a vital part of everyone’s lives and has turned into a necessity just like the services of a bank, water, electricity, etc.

The view that fast Internet access needs to be everyone’s right has been shared by the United Nations too. Britain has an Internet penetration of 73 percent. The British government has assured citizens that it will provide a minimum connection of at least 2Mbps to all homes by 2012 but it has not made it a law yet. The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world, which does not have a national policy to promote high-speed broadband.

• Your fastest Internet in the world is found in Berkeley, CA [/caption] By Nate Anderson If you want the fastest average broadband speed in the world, don't move to Japan. Instead,...
• Google to Deliver Ultra-Fast Internet Access [/caption] Google says it will set up a new test network in some communities that will give its customers internet...
• Apple conference likely to yield new iPhone [/caption] SEATTLE – After a series of leaked prototypes, it's almost a given that Apple Inc. will unveil a new...
• Internet is running out of web addresses [/caption] 'Grave consequences' if web community doesn't switch to new address protocol. The internet is running out of web addresses,...
• iPhone 4: Everything You Need to Know [/caption] Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone 4 today, which he claims offers over 100 new features, though he would focus...

• Starting A Business On The Internet They say that the easiest way to become a millionaire to marry one or inherit the fate of one. Well,...
• DELL Touchscreen Android leaked on film - CES 2010 Video footage of the Dell Streak - a 5-inch, touchscreen, Android-based mobile internet device, or MID - has hit the...
• What Is Google Adwords Google adwords are used in ads by those advertisers who want to bring in online consumers to their websites. Whenever...
• Many People Dream To Create The Home Business Many people dream to create the home business, at least small business that will bring the additional income besides the...
• Six Painless Steps to Reduce Monthly Expenses by $130 Many of us stay on the sidelines of saving and investing for our future because of a perceived lack of...