Finland gives it citizens a legal right to broadband.

The Ministry of Transport and Communications in Finland have announced that by next July everyone in Finland will have a legal right to a one megabit broadband connection. This announcement comes after the country already committed to making 100 megabit broadband a legal right by 2015. The country’s recent announcement is the first
step towards this goal.

At first glance, it might look like the Finish Government is going to give free 1 megabit broadband to all its 5.3 million citizens. However, when you look deeper the 1 megabit broadband connection refers to the minimum requirement for speeds in the country. There is also some leeway built in for lower speeds in rural areas where the infrastructure may not be advanced as urban areas. Still, this is strong commitment for a government to make.

In 2008, Finland was ranked second in the ITIF Global Broadband Rankings and was only surpassed by Korea and Japan. The commitments by Finland’s Government to broadband development will surely push them further up the global ranking.

Finally, access to consistent, relatively fast broadband should be a globally recognised human right. Finland has now paved the way for other countries to follow through its legally binding commitments.