The results from 395 respondents to ISPreview.co.uk's latest survey (*) have revealed that most UK internet users still prefer a standalone broadband ISP package (65%) to a bundle (35%) with other services, though interest in bundles has increased since our 2007 survey when just 20% preferred them (**) to a standalone product.

When asked which service the respondents would "most desire" to be bundled with their fixed line broadband ISP connections, 61.2% said line rental (phone calls), 17.7% wanted Television, 15.6% felt Mobile Broadband would be the best compliment and only 5.3% wanted a mobile phone service.

Ofcom's recent 'Communications Market Report 2010' (***) also found that bundles of telephone and broadband services accounted for the lion's share of the UK market at 22% (20% in 2009), while triple-play bundles of phone, broadband and television services held 17%.

"There was a time when consumers distrusted bundles because of the way they lock several services into a single package and limit your flexibility to change providers," commented ISPreview.co.uk's Founder, Mark Jackson. "Some providers also rushed to launch cheap mass-market broadband services and in so doing failed to offer a reliable product, which ultimately resulted in some very dissatisfied customers."

"Service quality and market regulation has now improved, although fears surrounding the complexity of changing bundled suppliers and lengthy contracts still exist. The new generation of super-fast broadband services will offer communication providers even more opportunities to exploit (e.g. IPTV) and boost reliability, suggesting that bundles should continue to grow in popularity," concluded Jackson.

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* 395 ISPreview.co.uk readers surveyed between mid-August and mid-September 2010.
** http://www.ispreview.co.uk/cgi-bin/polls/_polls.cgi?archive_id=55
*** http://www.ispreview.co.uk/story/2010/08/19/mobile-services-and-bundles-boost-uk-broadband-take-up-to-71-percent.html