The demand for high speed internet access is greater now than at any time in history, obviously, as the need for such services increases in sync with their attractiveness. At present, the form of internet access offering the fastest speeds of all would have to be cable internet, especially (though not always) in those cases where the local cable grid has been optimized with fiber-optics cable, as is the case in many of the nations major urban and suburban areas. Cable internet is attractive for a variety of reasons beyond the evident superiority in connection rates, such as the ability to bundle the service along with cable TV and/or cable phone services.
Residential internet users by and large choose cable internet over other forms, though it is important to point out that cable internet only extends as far as the cable grid itself (residents of rural areas, for example, would have to find another alternative). The average home user will have access to download speeds of between 5 and 10 Mbps courtesy of their cable connection, with upload speeds that usually beat other internet services (where download/upload disparity is very pronounced). Many cable providers will increase the broadband of your residential or office connection, obviously at a heftier monthly rate, and it is possible to get upwards of 15 Mbps in certain areas and at certain moments (non-peak traffic hours).
Cable internet is usually only available from one company in a given area, which is inevitably the same company offering cable TV and phone services; the cable industry is practically by definition one in which only one provider exists for a determined area. Though some claim that this undermines the competitiveness in the industry, at the same time it provides customers with the incentive of being able to bundle services and save on their monthly expenses. Given the fact that cable internet brings the most reliable quality signal, being “always on” as they say in the industry, in addition to the fastest connection speeds, this particular kind of service continues to expand at a healthy rate and is consolidating itself as the service of choice of a great deal of people.
