The truth about broadband speeds
Research published by broadband comparison website www.broadbandexpert.com.au, has found Australian Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are delivering less than 50% of the download speeds spruiked in broadband plans.
From 1 July 2009 to 31 December 2009, Broadband Expert collected data from 11,089 speed. The research asked consumers what the maximum ‘up to’ speed advertised from their broadband plan was and compared this to the actual speed achieved on Broadband Expert’s speed test.
The findings show most broadband providers fail to deliver anywhere near the maximum speeds quoted in their packages with the average speed just 48.89% of the quoted ‘up to’ download speed.
The pressure on ISPs from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to change the way they advertise theoretical speeds has meant that during late 2009 some providers stopped quoting download speeds for their plans altogether. Broadband Expert’s findings are based on those that do quote maximum download speeds or the data of those that did before the regulatory change.
Whilst the ACCC prevent ISPs from quoting unrealistic ‘up to’ download speeds by quoting no speed at all, this will lead to consumers having little idea of what to expect from their broadband connection and less information available when choosing an ISP.
The data shows that Australian broadband speeds average a lowly 3.5Mbs with some providers recording average speeds as low as 2.3 Mbs. The fastest provider in Broadband Expert’s latest report is Optus which clocked an average download speed of 5.3Mbs.
They also measured the average upload speed of ISPs, which is a measure of the speed that data is transmitted back over the Internet, an important factor for activities such as online gaming. The average upload speed was recorded at 0.5Mbs, with TPG Internet leading the way with an average of 0.6Mbs.
See also:
Australia – Broadband – Statistical overview and forecasts
Australia – Broadband – ADSL2+ Providers
Australia – Broadband – DSL Market Overview and Stats
Australia – Broadband Statistics – Business Market
Australia – Broadband Statistics – Residential Market
Tagged in: Australia, Australia, New Zealand & South Pacific
