Cable Broadband

There are several ways broadband services can be delivered, and cable broadband is one of them. Cable companies offer broadband services as well as television and telephony over networks that serve about 45% of UK homes and businesses. You cannot get cable broadband if your street is not already cabled and you can only get cable broadband from a cable company or through AOL Gold.

The two cable companies who supply cable broadband are NTL and Telewest. Both offer the same type of services. A cable modem is provided when you sign up to a cable broadband package. A cable modem has two connections, one to the cable wall outlet and the other to a PC or to a set-top box for a TV set. If you have more than one PC, you may wish to share your connection to multiple PC's either wirelessly or with wires. To do this you will need a wired or wireless broadband router that plugs directly into the cable modem using an RJ-45 connection (check that your cable modem has one).

What is the difference between ADSL and cable broadband?

AOL Broadband Gold
AOL is the only provider that gives you the choice to connect to a high speed broadband package via either ADSL or cable. AOL Broadband Gold is available at speeds of up to 2Mbps via ADSL or cable.

In the UK, the most widely available type of broadband service runs over a normal telephone line, and is known as ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line). ADSL is supplied by BT, and since the end of May 2002, it has been available to more than two-thirds of the UK population. AOL then supplies AOL Broadband services using this technology.

Broadband is also available via cable modem. In this case it connects the home computer to the Internet via a high-speed cable modem using ntl's cable network.

Whichever option you take, you will get the same high-speed Internet access and the same exclusive AOL Broadband content.

AOL Broadband Silver and AOL Broadband Platinum
These services are only available if you have a BT telephone line.