A Year Ago: UK Net access most expensive in Europe

UK Internet access is the most expensive in Europe, according to a survey from analyst Datamonitor.

Average subscription in the UK is about £15, compared to just over £3 in Sweden, the cheapest in Europe. In Italy, France, Spain and Scandinavia Internet access is widely available for under £10. Germany and the Netherlands are almost as expensive as the UK with connection charges of around £14. Online service providers offering proprietary content and charging premium fees for their services are cited in the report as the reasons for the above average subscription costs.

The survey also found UK users spend the least time online. This coupled with high subscription costs makes the UK one of the most attractive markets for Internet access providers, according to the report.