Disparities in global broadband costs uncovered

The cost of broadband internet access varies dramatically around the world, with consumers in some of the poorest countries being asked to pay out more than they earn in a month.

According to a report by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), broadband subscriptions in Western Europe cost around one per cent or less of the average worker's monthly salary.

But in BRIC nations this rises to five per cent or more, while broadband bills in some countries cost more than 100 per cent of a person's typical earnings.

For this reason, less than one per cent of the population have broadband internet in these countries, compared to 30 per cent in wealthy Western European nations.

Dr Hamadoun Toure, secretary general of the ITU, said: "Broadband is today's truly transformational technology.

"As with the dawn of other inventions that profoundly reshaped our society, most of us are yet to see the tremendous power and potential of these networks."

Figures from market intelligence company ABI Research show that in the second quarter of 2010 there were just under 449 million fixed broadband subscribers around the world.