Quarter Of Irish Professionals Flag Poor Office Broadband Causing Issues For Doing Their Job Effectively

Poor broadband connectivity in Irish businesses is impacting both their productivity and customer satisfaction, according to new research commissioned by broadband network operator SIRO. In the past complaints about rural connectivity for Irish homes would have been common, but now the majority of Irish professionals (60%) claim their home broadband is better than their office connection.

The survey by Amárach Research revealed that a quarter (26%) of Irish workers said that poor broadband connectivity in the office is impacting their ability to do their job effectively, with professionals in Dublin (32%), Connacht (32%) and Ulster (32%) reporting the highest levels of dissatisfaction.

Having substandard broadband connections are also hurting Irish businesses’ efforts to attract and keep customers, with high levels of dissatisfaction also reported by shoppers. Approximately 6 in 10 (57%) members of the Irish public stated that they had bad experiences with Irish businesses connectivity when buying goods or services from them. Over 1 in 5 (22%) of those went further to say that they would be less likely to buy from those businesses again in the future because of their experience.

The research findings support the view that the slow take-up of fibre to the premises broadband by Irish businesses is now directly impacting both their productivity, attractiveness as a place to work and crucially, customers’ experience of those businesses.

The research comes as data by the telecommunications regulator, Comreg, indicates that only 12% of Irish businesses have an active fibre-to-the-premise connection (“full fibre”) with tens of thousands of these businesses continuing to rely on outdated and slow copper connections. This is despite Comreg data indicating that 79% of premises now have access to full fibre broadband.

Copper switch off, the process by which the outdated copper broadband network will be permanently turned off and decommissioned, is expected to commence over the coming years making it more urgent that businesses, particularly SMEs, still reliant on this outdated technology are now encouraged to move to faster and more reliable full fibre broadband.

In response, SIRO’s has launched a new bespoke product into the Irish market, LightPulse, a Gigabit fibre broadband product, tailored to meet the needs of Irish SMEs and designed to support these businesses in making the transition to full fibre.

Commenting on the findings, SIRO’s Head of Enterprise, Aoife O’Reilly said:

“This research highlights the fact that Irish business, particularly smaller businesses, are still relying on outdated copper connections which can no longer support their business needs.

“What is worrying for the longer-term growth and viability of these businesses, particularly in an era of connectivity-hungry AI, is that their poor broadband connections are now affecting their workers and customers – both of which are fundamental to the success of any company.

“Copper switch off is drawing ever closer, so rather than find themselves at a cliff edge, Irish businesses should check that they can avail of full fibre connectivity and proactively make the switch. Our research clearly shows that their employees, customers and bottom line will thank them for making the move,” added Ms. O’Reilly.

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