The Advertising Standards Authority could release the full results of the review of the rules governing how broadband providers can advertise broadband speeds, as early as this week.
It is also believed the review will demand that providers also advertise a speed range, with the lower limit that received by 80% of customers and the higher limit that received by 20% of customers.
An industry source says this could mean companies that currently claim speeds of 20Mb, would be forced into advertising a speed range of 2Mb to 10Mb.
The preliminary results of the consultation also only apply to broadband companies using copper wire, which covers the majority of the network, but does not take into account fibre optic or cable broadband.
Findings from the review are the result of an investigation that launched in January as a result of several complaints about broadband providers misleading customers about the level of service on offer.
Last week, and falsely implying the service was available to most, if not all, customers.
In response to the ruling, BT said in a statement: "We understand that they [the Advertising Standards Authority] want the fact that BT Infinity is rapidly rolling out, but not yet ‘widely available’, to be made clearer in the body copy of press ads. We see this as a minor point of clarification, particularly when compared with recent broadband claims upheld against Virgin."
In July, Virgin Media had ads banned that misleadingly claimed its internet service delivered faster broadband speeds than its competitors.
The ASA hopes the review will tighten up existing policy to ensure future adverts do not mislead through the omission of important information.
Ofcom released research in July that showed a growing gap between the advertised and the actual speeds delivered by broadband suppliers, although the average speed experienced by UK consumers has increased by more than 25% in the past year.
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