Bermuda internet service provider Transact yesterday disputed recent figures that found the cost of internet access in Bermuda to be the highest in the developed world.

Jamie Thain, the company's managing director, called the report by Discover Tech "seriously flawed" and insisted that the actual price of internet in Bermuda was much lower.

Discover Tech's report claimed that the average price of internet access here was $104 on average for one Mbit of service. When compared to a global survey conducted by the OECD, this figure made internet in Bermuda almost four times more expensive than the rest of the developed world.

In a statement yesterday, Mr. Thain took issue with the website's methodology - claiming it presented the worst price case for one Mbit of service. He also said the report fails to take in to account Bermuda's Purchasing Parity Power (PPP), which is among the highest in the world. The true figure, according to Mr. Thain, is $30 per Mbit PPP.

While he admitted the figure was "quite high", Mr. Thain blamed the situation on bandwidth limitations and added his company expects the cost of internet to reach $12-$15 per Mbit within the next year.

He cautioned that improvements to Bermuda's broadband service might be hampered by pending reforms to the industry.

"If regulatory reform comes into being we will probably be at 4-8 Mb for the next four to five years as the industry will want to stabilise before providing any new investment in capital," Mr. Thain said.