John Lewis becomes the latest high street retailer to enter the broadband market

John Lewis will compete against BT, Virgin Media and Sky, as well as Tesco which moved into broadband in 2009.

John Lewis's entry comes two years after it started selling insurance in an effort to enter new markets.

The retailer who also offers combined home phone packages want to give customers "an upfront and transparent price on a range of broadband and phone packages with no hidden costs".

They will provide three levels of home broadband, ranging from £11 to £25 a month on a 12-month contract, plus an extra £13.50 for home phone line rental.

Adam Brown of John Lewis Telecoms, comments “We know our customers want the same honest and trustworthy experience from their internet provision as they would expect from any product they buy from us.” In aiming for on quality and transparency rather than competing on price, the retailer is following the model of its successful home insurance, which has seen an increase in uptake of 45 per cent a year since it launched two years ago.

Waitrose, which is owned by the John Lewis group, will see its broadband service phased out over the coming months.