Ofcom, the UK's communications watchdog, has announced plans to back investment in super-fast broadband services across the country. In its 91-page report, Ofcom said it was "clearing the way" for future investment.

It also announced that, as BT gears up to share its new fibre optics network with competitors, it would not control the prices it charges other providers for access. Super-fast broadband - sometimes called next generation broadband - at 40Mbps can deliver speeds of up to 10 times the levels of today's broadband services, enabling a number of internet users in one household to access high bandwidth services, like content streaming and video conferencing, simultaneously.

Ofcom's report comes shortly after Lord Carter, the communications' secretary, announced the government's vision for universal home broadband access in all British households by 2012 at minimum speeds of 2Mbps.

However, the watchdog's new plans appear to corroborate the opinions of Lord Carter's critics, who claim that many households in the UK can already theoretically access speeds in excess of 2Mbps.Virgin Media, for example, already offers a 50MBps broadband service which runs over fibre optic cables, instead of traditional copper line connections.

Ofcom Chief Executive, Ed Richards, said: "Super-fast broadband represents one of the most important developments in modern communications for many decades. "Our message today is clear: there are no regulatory barriers in the way of investment in super-fast broadband; we want to promote investment but also ensure that there is fair and effective competition for the future." Last week, research from DSL and broadband resource Point Topic predicted that 90 per cent of UK homes would have access to connections of up to 32Mbps by 2019.