Britain's place in the internet revolution is being undermined by BT's failure to provide sufficient and affordable high-speed web access, says a report.

Research from analysts Point Topic claims that Britons pay the world's highest prices for DSL - digital subscriber line - technology, the cornerstone of development. And of 5.6m DSL users worldwide at the end of 2000, 38,000, or 0.7%, were British.

DSL is up to 40 times faster than dial-up services. It has the advantage of using the existing phone network, is always online and allows users to make calls at the same time.

The report claims BT has failed to meet its targets for DSL introduction, and charges much more than any other major country. Taiwan is the cheapest, as little as £11.50 a month, followed by Canada at £18.50 a month. DSL from BT's internet service provider, Openworld, is more than £50, says the report. Other providers offer DSL but buy lines wholesale from BT, and the price remains high, Point Topic claimed. Germany and Italy are £32 a month, comparable with mid-range US companies; France is £6 a month cheaper than the UK.

Europe has 544,000 users compared with 2.2m in the US and Canada, and 2.3m in Asia. Even by Europe's standards, Britain's 8,000 users was poor. Germany had 180,000, Italy 72,000, and France 64,000. Even Sweden and Denmark, with 50,000 and 40,000 respectively, outstrip the UK.

John Bosnell, one of the report's editors, said: "We knew BT had had problems, but we were surprised by how poorly Britain fares compared with the rest of the world."

Rebecca Webster, of BT Ignite, the subsidiary responsible for the technology, questioned Point Topic's figures and denied BT undermined e-commerce. "We got off the starting blocks later than other countries, but we are catching up. It took Germany a year to get where we are in six months. We believe we offer our customers good value for money."