Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have been urged to sign up to a new code of practice that has been brought out by the media watchdog Ofcom.

The voluntary code has already been signed up to by 37 ISPs, which represents 90 per cent of broadband customers.

Ofcom was concerned that advertised broadband speeds differ from what consumers get in practice, after its own research has revealed a fall in consumer satisfaction with ISPs.

Ed Richards, Ofcom's chief executive, said: "Broadband is a thriving market in the UK. We want to encourage real clarity for consumers about the actual broadband speeds they can receive."

The watchdog recommends that fixed-line ISPs should provide customers with an accurate estimate of the fastest speed that a line can support.

It is urging every fixed-line ISP in the UK to sign up to the code and see that it is implemented within six months of signing up.

According to Computeractive report, a recent Moneysupermarket and You Gov survey revealed that household names such as Sky, Talk Talk and Tiscali were performing worse in terms of customer satisfaction than less well known ISPs.

A recent Connect survey found that the two major concerns about outsourcing services like IT support were 'loss of control' (56 per cent) and 'budget over-runs' (43 per cent)