Further calls for implementing fibre-based broadband were issued recently, as it is seen to be fundamental for the next generation of web applications.

At the start of the month Ofcom announced it would be investigating the practicality of fibre-based broadband, including the possibility of setting up the network in sewers.

The founder of virtual world simulator Second Life, Phillip Rosedale believes that the success of applications like YouTube and Second Life is because of increased internet speeds since the 90s.

Chief executive officer at Ofcom, Ed Richards told Computer Weekly: "[Current broadband] is fine for many uses but perhaps less so in future with the growth of home working, peer-to-peer traffic and the needs of small and medium-sized businesses.

Rosedale echoes these comments, as he believes more multi-media rich applications will be made available that require faster broadband, according to Computer Weekly.

In related news, the BBC clashed with internet service providers (ISPs) recently because of the way the BBC iPlayer is increasing demand for extra bandwidth and causing the companies to upgrade their networks.

According to a recent survey by Connect, the two biggest IT headaches for businesses were 'everyday hassles with IT' (37 per cent) and 'security concerns' (32 per cent) In a recent survey of SMEs for Connect, the two most important benefits of outsourcing were 'guaranteed response times' and 'allowing in-house IT staff to concentrate on more strategic issues'