[11.09.2007 first posted on silicon republic]
With 16.5pc penetration, Ireland is closing in on the EU-25’s 18.1pc average for broadband per capita and should surpass it by the end of the year, the Minister for Communications, Energy & Natural Resources Eamon Ryan said yesterday.

Ryan said he is also working on a policy paper on Next Generation networks, and said he is determined to ensure Ireland will be well positioned for the shift to these networks in the years ahead.
Commenting on the total of 698,000 Irish consumers now subscribing for broadband services, Ryan said he was encouraged that 45,000 of these were consumers taking up mobile broadband services in the last quarter.
“This is a relatively new area that is still undergoing some teething problems but I am confident that the service providers can overcome these difficulties and it will prove to be an important new channel in broadband provision,” Ryan said.
“Both the European Commission and the OECD will also shortly be adding mobile broadband statistics to their league tables.”
Ryan said that the rapid take up of mobile broadband still demonstrates there is an appetite among consumers for access to broadband services.
“The National Broadband Scheme will, when fully rolled out, help us to meet this demand and ensure that all reasonable requests for broadband can be met,” he said.
“I will be striving over the coming months to ensure that the tender process for the National Broadband Scheme proceeds as quickly as possible and the rollout of these new broadband services around the country can begin.”
However, Minister Ryan also sounded a note of caution and warned against complacency.
“While these statistics clearly illustrate that real progress is being made in the provision of basic broadband services, I believe that we can and should strive for more ambitious goals,” he said.
By John Kennedy