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Comment by lorddoig | Hacker News Reader

This makes me envious. In the UK, Holy Mother State has determined that 2Mbps + nasty contention ratio + fair usage policy and/or usage cap = "broadband".

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That's the government definition, but are better plans available for reasonable cost?

A countryman of mine posted in reply to your comment that Canada defines broadband as fairly slow, by modern standards, but I get 28Mbps/1Mbps right now (over cable) and my daughter just ordered a 25/10 DSL package (from the same service provider; two different physical plant owners, same ISP over top). Both plans are reasonably priced, I think (at least compared to the big incumbents and to what we are used to :->).

28/1 is a crazy DL/UL ratio. It's probably beyond the point where the narrowness of the uplink slows downloads.

I wish the official broadband definitions included something about the uplink.

The official definition, at least the FCC one, addresses speed in both directions.

I hear you. In Canada, "broadband" is 1.5Mbps down and 640Kbps up. Hilarious.

The CRTC is about to review that, likely in early 2016 it will be at least 5Mbps down and ~1 up.

We (Northern Canada) are holding things back :)

Not just up north. I'm in the Maritimes and its the same here.

I mean our infrastructure up here is holding the CRTC back from upping the minimum requirements. It's going to take a massive investment to bring northern Canada up to those speeds, and the CRTC is going to pay for it.

I work for the telco up here....

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