Virgin Media To Set Up Free Broadband Schools

Virgin Media plans to set up free broadband schools across the UK to help educate the British public on broadband, internet and technology jargon.

The move follows a 3,000 strong survey by Virgin Media which revealed that a shocking 18% of Britons don’t actually understand what the term “broadband” means. When asked to describe what it meant, those 18% struggled to give an explanation.

Further to that, 40% of people didn’t understand what ADSL broadband was. Blu-Ray is also misunderstood with 7% of people assuming that it is a type of internet access.
These survey results show that whilst Britain is advancing in the broadband sector, many people still don’t fully understand how it all works. Nearly half of the consumers who were surveyed didn’t understand how broadband speeds were measured. Perhaps most shockingly was that 40% of web users didn’t understand what a web browser was.

The Executive Director of Virgin Media, Jon James, said, “It’s great to see that Brits have a thirst for getting online, but there is still scope to improve their broadband experience.”

It’s reported that Virgin will set up the free broadband schools in ten different areas across the UK. As of yet the way in which the schools will work is not fully understood. However, there are plans for a drop in service where members of the public can simply drop in and ask questions.

The founder of Virgin, Sir Richard Branson, explained more about the decision to create the free broadband schools. He said, “At Virgin Media, we want everyone to feel comfortable asking questions, no matter how silly they think they are, so that they can get the most out of their internet service and enjoy everything the internet has to offer.”

The Virgin Media free broadband schools will be launched in the areas which have shown to be the least knowledgeable in the survey. No launch dates have yet been given.