Author: Ookla

Ookla® is a global leader in connectivity intelligence that provides consumers, businesses, and other organizations with data-driven insights to improve networks and connected experiences.
Ookla Research™ Articles
| June 16, 2022

How Wireless Infrastructure Providers Can Maximize ROI with Crowdsourced Network Intelligence [Webinar]

Network Performance

Tower companies, DAS, neutral hosts, and other infrastructure providers are heavily investing in wireless assets to deliver expansive, uninterrupted connections with lightning-fast speeds to create a more connected world. While this presents wireless infrastructure providers with opportunities for major growth, they need the right data to make the most profitable investment decisions. This type of data includes network performance, user density, data usage, and other indicators to determine the best locations for investments or partnerships.

In the next Ookla® webinar, learn how wireless infrastructure providers can make smarter investments, more informed real estate decisions, and help improve network performance by using crowdsourced network intelligence to prioritize efforts.

Keep reading to learn how wireless infrastructure providers can use these insights, and sign up for the webinar on Wednesday, June 29, at 10 a.m. PDT (5 p.m. GMT), for a more in-depth discussion.

1. Make more informed wireless infrastructure planning decisions

When wireless infrastructure providers are ready to invest in new assets, they need an accurate view into the availability of coverage and performance in a given area. An oversaturated, congested network may require different solutions than an underserved area.

A map of crowdsourced data showing how infrastructure providers can use it to make better planning decisions.

This map shows the location of a mobile network operator’s (MNO’s) towers and the corresponding signal strength on that network, allowing infrastructure providers to better understand where to approach the operator for new assets.

2. Better prioritize future deployments and investments

As MNOs prepare for 5G and other new network deployments, infrastructure providers can use crowdsourced data to determine spots of low coverage and performance in both urban and rural areas. This allows infrastructure providers to determine what areas need additional assets to improve connectivity to serve the population, and they can make those determinations based on usage.

A map showing how mobile network data can help infrastructure companies can better prioritize future deployments and investments.

As the operator deployed 5G in Las Vegas, infrastructure providers can use this information to put the right assets in place, such as adding DAS, to support a new network.

3. Benchmark the performance, quality, and availability of existing indoor and outdoor networks

Infrastructure providers can also use crowdsourced network intelligence to find potential co-location opportunities and compare operators to find new business opportunities. By analyzing KPIs for all operators in a given area, an infrastructure provider can determine which operators need to improve network coverage, performance, or quality in key locations.

A map of crowdsourced data showing the various signal strengths.

For example, the above image shows areas of poor signal strength for one operator in a city block in Chicago. Comparing this to other operators in the area, an infrastructure provider can identify new sales opportunities down to the individual building level.

4. Identify buildings and areas with high user concentration and data usage, as well as poor network quality, coverage, and performance

By pinpointing congested areas or buildings, wireless infrastructure providers can better plan where to add DAS and other equipment to help offset the network density.

A map that shows where new assets could be used to help with connectivity.

This map shows infrastructure providers where new assets could help with network performance issues related to user density.

5. Drive a more efficient sales process with per-building intelligence

With accurate, detailed insights, the infrastructure provider can export data to pinpoint the exact issues building by building. The provider can then use that data to proactively determine the optimal locations for leasing roof or building space to build new equipment. They can even use that data to identify where operators should lease additional cell sites to improve coverage and performance, which gives them an advantage when starting those business development conversations.

A map that shows coverage by the individual building name.

With this data, infrastructure providers can look up the building name and see the individual operator’s performance, and then approach them with the right asset solution.

For more information on how to use crowdsourced data to improve your ROI, join us for the webinar on June 29 at 10 a.m. PDT. Even if you can’t attend at this time, you will receive a video recording after the live event. We look forward to sharing how wireless infrastructure providers are making better investment decisions and answering your questions.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Network Performance

About the Author

Ookla

Ookla Research™ Articles
| May 12, 2022

Introducing a Better Measure of Latency

Ookla News

Latency can seem like a sleeper metric — one that you may not think about when you’re troubleshooting your connections but one that deeply affects your online experience. As speeds increase globally, it’s becoming increasingly obvious to many that something is still getting in the way of the seamless video calls, streaming, and gaming we dream of. That something is often latency and we at Ookla® have recently redesigned how Speedtest® measures latency to give you better access to this essential metric.

What latency is and why it matters

Latency (sometimes called ping) measures how quickly your device gets a response after you’ve sent out a request. A low latency means the server is responding quickly to your request whereas a high latency means a slow response. An example of how this works in online gaming is when you ask your character to move — if your character moves almost immediately, you have a low latency, if there is a delay in your character completing that movement, you might have a high latency.

Latency has always mattered to online experience. However, it has often been difficult to tell the difference between a slow connection and a high latency as both can delay you from getting what you want from the internet. These days, many folks have faster connections but there’s still a disconnect between asking their device to perform an action online and having it complete that action. Which means poor latency is becoming more obvious as the internet gets faster and more devices are connected online.

How our metric is changing (and why)

Speedtest has always tested for latency. A simple measure, labeled “ping,” has been at the top of the app next to download speed. However, we’re no longer living in a world where one device is connected to one router. Instead, you might find yourself with a laptop, tablet, phone, TV and even other smart devices connected to Wi-Fi all at once. And that’s just in your living room.

Former Latency Location in iOS Speedtest

Our new latency test measures loaded latency, giving a more nuanced picture of responsiveness and what the bottlenecks in your connection really are. The loaded latency test measures ping during three stages, giving you a convenient, easy to use way to better understand your network experience. These three stages are:

  • Idle Ping. This test at the beginning of your Speedtest measures the response of a request on your network as if it is not in use.
  • Download Ping. Latency is measured while the download test is in progress to see how it is affected by download activity on your network, like a household member downloading a large game while you’re trying to work.
  • Upload Ping. Latency is also measured while the upload test is in progress to see how it is affected by upload activity on your network, like someone on your home network uploading a year’s worth of photos.

Location of new Loaded Latency information during testing

Our mission at Ookla is to empower consumers across the globe to understand and optimize their internet experience. This new metric gives you the detailed information you need to understand where the bottlenecks in your network’s responsiveness really are. If you’re looking for our old latency metric for comparison, look for the “idle low” in the detailed section of the test.

How you can use our new latency metrics in the real world

All you have to do to get these new latency measures is take the same Speedtest on your Android or iOS device that you’ve been using all along. It’s free (always) and will give you even more insight into the performance of your network. If you don’t see it yet on your mobile device, simply update the app.

Run the Speedtest to see where your latency issues actually lie. You can use your mobile device to test both your cellular network (which you don’t have a lot of control over) and your Wi-Fi network (which you have a lot of room to troubleshoot).

  • If your idle ping is high, you have an overall latency problem. You will want to test the network with another device to see if the issue affects both. If it does, restart your router. If the problem continues, consider moving your router someplace more central.
  • If your download or upload ping is high, you may have a bigger problem. Contact your router manufacturer or internet service provider (ISP) to see if they can help. Advanced users may find this guide useful.

Improve the responsiveness of your online experience. Test your latency on Android or iOS today.

Editor’s note: This article was updated on May 20 with details on where to find the older latency metric.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Ookla News

About the Author

Ookla

Ookla Research™ Articles
| May 2, 2022

Introducing Speedtest Maps™ for iOS

Consumer

You asked and we listened. Speedtest® fans who use Apple devices have long been requesting access to our Maps feature, and we are happy to report that this feature is now available for Android and iOS. So if you’ve been looking for a map of coverage that highlights which mobile providers have what level of service in the areas that matter most to you, open your Speedtest app today and check out the tab marked “Maps.”

How Speedtest Maps help you

Two Maps Side by Side

Speedtest Maps give you access to information about where you will and will likely not have access to different levels of service in a particular area. For example:

  • If you’re looking to use your brand new 5G phone on an upcoming vacation, you can check the map to see if your operator had 5G service in that location.
  • If you consistently find yourself dropping calls in the same spot on your daily walk, you can check our map to see if others who use the same provider are experiencing the same thing in the same area. Then you can take that information to your operator to ask them to improve service in that area.
  • If you’re looking to change operators, you can check to see who has the kind of service you need in the locations you visit most often.

Find and use your Speedtest Map today

If you already have Speedtest on your mobile device, you now have access to Speedtest Maps for both Android and iOS for free within our existing app. If you don’t see the Maps tab in the bottom right of your screen with the map open, simply update the app. And if you don’t have the Speedtest app, download it today for Android or iOS.

Explore maps for a variety of providers

Carrier Selection

Slide the bar up to select which provider you want to see detailed information for using the slider within the Map. You can use this to compare the service you’re subscribed to with that of other operators.

Access details on the best tech type available and the most common

Tech Type Selection

Use the bar at the top of the slider to choose whether you want to see the best available technology in an area or the most common. For example, there may be some 5G available in a certain area (Best) but LTE might be the “most common” tech type you’ll find there. The most common technology type layer in Speedtest Maps shows the technology type we saw at that location most frequently across all device types. This includes devices that are incapable of connecting to a 5G network (devices that support only 2G, 3G, and 4G LTE). If you are measuring whether 5G is available, use the “Best” layer.

Speedtest Maps are built using data from consumers who have opted in to location sharing in the Speedtest app. If you’d like to add valuable data to the maps and help to improve the feature, turn on location sharing in the settings of your device.

Our mission at Ookla is to empower consumers across the globe to understand and optimize their internet experience. Access to Speedtest Maps helps you find detailed information on coverage in the locations that matter most to you. Open the Speedtest app on your mobile device to check your map today or download Speedtest for Android or iOS.

Editor’s note: This article was updated on May 20 to clarify the uses of the “Best” and “Most Common” layers.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Consumer
Ookla News

About the Author

Ookla

Ookla Research™ Articles
| April 27, 2022

Four Ways Regulators Can Leverage Mobile Network Data to Improve Connectivity [Webinar]

Regulatory

As regulators focus on improving network coverage, performance, and availability for their countries, they need a real-world view into consumers’ connectivity to understand where constituents lack adequate network speeds and coverage — as well how operators use new networks and spectrum allocations. Without these insights, regulators may not have the information they need to help improve connectivity in underserved areas. But how do regulators ensure they have an accurate view into connectivity gaps?

While mobile network operators (MNOs) supply regulatory bodies with their own performance and coverage maps, this information is often outdated by the time regulators receive it. Furthermore, information provided by the MNOs is often only predicted coverage and doesn’t provide a granular view into real-world network conditions experienced by consumers in a market. For accurate insights on network coverage and performance, validated third-party data can give regulators the information they need to bring better connectivity to their countries.

In the upcoming webinar, you’ll hear four ways regulatory bodies from around the world leverage Ookla® data to inform policy decisions and improve local connectivity.

Keep reading to find out how telecommunications regulators put these insights into action, and sign up for the webinar on Wednesday, May 11, at 6 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. GMT), for a more in-depth discussion.

Target areas for improving mobile connectivity

Identifying areas with little or no coverage and slow data speeds is the first step to improving networks and increasing availability. With these insights, regulators can introduce policies that encourage mobile operators to invest in expansion efforts, leading to stronger economic growth, better access to education, improved public safety, and more job opportunities.

Drawn from hundreds of millions of daily coverage scans and over 15 million consumer-initiated tests per day, the crowdsourced data in Cell Analytics™ shows an accurate picture of mobile network performance, availability, data usage, user density, and many more metrics — for virtually every operator in the world.

Above, we see Vodafone’s service availability and data speeds west of Sydney, Australia, with the red areas marking no service, showing areas where regulators can encourage operators to improve coverage.

Monitor new network and technology deployments

As operators roll out new 5G service and greenfield networks, regulators need to monitor these deployments to ensure they meet the necessary requirements. This is especially true for recently licensed spectrum. Operators typically must use new spectrum in a required timeframe or return it to the government for reallocation. Ookla data can help regulatory bodies monitor new network deployments, alongside spectrum information, network performance, and coverage metrics for the newly allocated spectrum.

Cell Analytics captures the LTE RSRP for DITO in Manila, Philippines, over the last two years, showing their buildout starting from small isolated pockets of coverage to strong signal across the metropolitan area.

Track spectrum utilization and data usage hotspots to prepare for 5G

In addition to tracking if operators use the acquired spectrum by the required deadline, regulators can monitor how operators use their spectrum. This gives regulators insights into whether operators are optimally balancing their spectrum among the different technologies to maximize the user experience and capacity.

In this example, Cell Analytics tracks mobile data usage in Singapore to identify areas of high data use (red areas in this map).
Cell Analytics displays spectrum utilization to help regulators monitor the ways each operator manages their spectrum. In this view, we see the band most often utilized by Singtel’s LTE users in Singapore. This can be compared to the data usage map to verify that users in high demand areas receive service on higher frequency bands that have more capacity. Additionally, regulators can check that operators are balancing spectrum appropriately across the various technologies from 2G to 5G.

Identify signals covering beyond national borders

Regulators want to keep signals from neighboring countries out of their territory. Not only does service leaking in from another country take away revenue from local operators, but it also interferes with the performance of the local networks. With visibility into signal crossing over national boundaries, regulators can proactively and diplomatically address the issue with their neighboring counterparts.

With crowdsourced data, Cell Analytics shows where signals from Austria cross into Bratislava, Slovakia. Slovakian regulators can share this data with Austrian regulators and request that they order the operator to contain the signal within the national boundary.

For a more detailed look at how regulators put this data into practice, join us for the webinar on May 11 at 6 a.m. PST. Even if you can’t attend at this time, you will receive a video recording after the live event. We look forward to sharing how regulators are making better connectivity a reality and answering your questions.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Regulatory

About the Author

Ookla

Ookla Research™ Articles
| April 18, 2022

Speedtest Global Index Market Analyses Now Available for 43 Countries

Network Performance

Speedtest Global Index™ Market Analyses from Ookla® identify key data about internet performance in countries across the world. This quarter we’ve provided updated analyses for 44 markets that include details on fastest mobile and fixed broadband providers, performance of most popular devices and chipsets and internet speeds in cities. Click a country on the list below to see highlights or scroll through the article to learn what Speedtest Intelligence® revealed in all 43 markets:

Africa and the Middle East

Côte d’Ivoire | Jordan | Kenya | Libya | Nigeria
South Africa | Tanzania | Turkey

Asia and Oceania

China | Hong Kong (SAR) | New Zealand | Philippines | Singapore
Taiwan | Thailand | Vietnam

Europe

Austria | Belgium | Czechia | Denmark | Estonia
Finland| France | Germany | Hungary | Latvia
Lithuania | Luxembourg | Malta | Moldova | Poland
Slovakia | Spain

North and South America

Argentina | Brazil | Canada | Chile | Colombia
Ecuador | Guatemala | Mexico | Peru | United States

Africa and the Middle East

Côte d’Ivoire

  • Speedtest Intelligence revealed mobile provider MTN had the fastest median download speed (15.71 Mbps) and Consistency Score™ (71.1%) in Côte d’Ivoire during Q1 2022.
  • There was no statistical winner for fastest fixed broadband provider in Côte d’Ivoire during Q1 2022, though Orange had a median download speed of 33.65 Mbps and CANALBOX had a median download speed of 33.35 Mbps.

Jordan

  • Speedtest Intelligence found Umniah was the fastest mobile operator in Jordan during Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 30.42 Mbps.
  • Fixed broadband provider Orange held the fastest median download speed in Jordan at 78.08 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Kenya

  • Mobile operator Safaricom had the fastest median mobile download speed at 20.49 Mbps in Kenya during Q1 2022.
  • For fixed broadband, Faiba had the fastest median download speed (24.64 Mbps) and Consistency Score (49.8%) in Kenya during Q1 2022.

Libya

  • Speedtest Intelligence reveals that mobile operator Libyana had the fastest median mobile download speed in Libya at 12.54 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Among top fixed broadband providers, AWAL Telecom had the fastest median download speed in Libya at 20.02 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Nigeria

  • Fixed broadband provider ipNX had the fastest median download speed (21.34 Mbps) and highest Consistency Score (45.9%) in Nigeria during Q1 2022.
  • There was no statistical winner for fastest top mobile operator in Nigeria during Q1 2022, though Airtel and MTN led the way at 22.42 Mbps and 21.71 Mbps, respectively.

South Africa

  • Speedtest Intelligence shows Cool Ideas had the fastest fixed broadband median download speed (46.05 Mbps) and highest Consistency Score (73.2%) in South Africa during Q1 2022.
  • MTN had the fastest median 5G download speed in South Africa at 213.37 Mbps during Q1 2022, much faster than Vodacom (132.11 Mbps).
  • The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra dominated for fastest popular device in South Africa during Q1 2022 and achieved a median download speed of 105.21 Mbps. The Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max followed at 82.23 Mbps.

Tanzania

  • Among top mobile operators in Tanzania, Halotel had the fastest median download speed (17.84 Mbps) and highest Consistency Score (80.1%) during Q1 2022.
  • Mwanza had the fastest median mobile download speed among Tanzania’s most populous cities at 13.76 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Turkey

  • Speedtest Intelligence reveals mobile provider Turkcell had the fastest median download speed and highest Consistency Score in Turkey at 53.77 Mbps and 92.7%, respectively, during Q1 2022.
  • For fixed broadband in Turkey, TurkNet had the highest median download speed (47.43 Mbps) and Consistency Score (76.8%) during Q1 2022.

Asia and Oceania

China

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, China Telecom was the fastest fixed broadband provider in China with a median download speed of 146.70 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • During Q1 2022, China Mobile achieved the fastest median 5G download speed at 300.96 Mbps, ahead of China Telecom (296.97 Mbps) and China Unicom (280.62 Mbps).
  • Among top device manufacturers, Huawei had the fastest median download speed in China at 108.94 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Hong Kong (SAR)

  • China Mobile Hong Kong was the fastest mobile operator in Hong Kong, achieving a median download speed of 66.11 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • China Mobile Hong Kong also showed the fastest 5G download speed, achieving a median speed of 172.19 Mbps during Q1 2022. Mobile provider 3 followed at 155.81 Mbps.

New Zealand

  • Vodafone was the fastest mobile operator in New Zealand during Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 59.65 Mbps.
  • 2degrees blazed ahead with the fastest median 5G download speed in New Zealand at 479.71 Mbps during Q1 2022, beating out Vodafone (342.45 Mbps) and Spark (307.21 Mbps).
  • For fixed broadband, MyRepublic achieved the fastest median download speed in New Zealand at 217.66 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Philippines

  • During Q1 2022, Smart had the fastest median download speed (24.07 Mbps) among top mobile operators in the Philippines.
  • Smart also had the fastest median 5G download speed in the Philippines during Q1 2022 at 200.43 Mbps.
  • Caloocan took the top spot for fastest median mobile download speed among the Philippines’ most populous cities at 25.71 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Singapore

  • Speedtest Intelligence shows Singtel was the fastest top mobile operator in Singapore with a median download speed of 93.00 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Singtel blazed ahead of the competition for fastest median 5G download speed in Singapore at 360.31 Mbps during Q1 2022 — a strong rise over its median 5G download speed of 289.01 Mbps during Q4 2021.

Taiwan

  • During Q1 2022, Chunghwa Telecom had the fastest median 5G download speed in Taiwan at 415.45 Mbps. FarEasTone followed at 310.83 Mbps.
  • The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 had the fastest median download speed among popular chipsets in Taiwan at 162.51 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Thailand

  • Speedtest Intelligence revealed that AIS had the fastest median download speed on mobile in Thailand at 43.52 Mbps during Q1 2022, beating out TrueMove H and dtac.
  • AIS also had the fastest median 5G download speed in Thailand during Q1 2022 at 261.19 Mbps, followed by TrueMove H and dtac.

Vietnam

  • Vinaphone was Vietnam’s fastest mobile operator during Q1 2022, reaching a median mobile download speed of 42.43 Mbps, just faster than Viettel (40.61 Mbps).
  • Apple’s iPhone 13 Pro had the fastest median download speed among popular devices in Vietnam at 70.91 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Europe

Austria

  • Magenta took the top spot as Austria’s fastest fixed broadband provider with a median download speed of 154.44 Mbps during Q1 2022. LIWEST was the closest competitor (88.75 Mbps).
  • A1 was the fastest mobile provider in Austria during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 69.80 Mbps. Operator 3 followed at 53.73 Mbps.

Belgium

  • Telenet decisively claimed its spot as Belgium’s fastest fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 129.18 Mbps. VOO followed at 109.76 Mbps.
  • Among mobile operators, Telenet/BASE had the fastest median download speed at 66.92 Mbps.

Czechia

  • Speedtest Intelligence reveals T-Mobile was Czechia’s fastest mobile provider during Q1 2022, recording a median download speed of 55.63 Mbps.
  • Vodafone was Czechia’s fastest fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 89.23 Mbps.

Denmark

  • Fastspeed was Denmark’s fastest fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 284.28 Mbps. Hiper followed at 239.43 Mbps.
  • YouSee was Denmark’s fastest mobile operator, earning a median download speed of 115.87 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Estonia

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Elisa was the fastest fixed broadband provider in Estonia during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 74.48 Mbps.
  • Telia had the fastest mobile median download speed in Estonia at 73.20 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Finland

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, DNA took the top spot as Finland’s fastest mobile operator in Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 70.76 Mbps. DNA also edged out Telia for the highest Consistency Score 93.1% to 91.7%.
  • In addition, DNA had the fastest 5G download speed in Finland, achieving a median download speed of 297.70 Mbps. Telia (259.68 Mbps) and Elisa (230.35 Mbps) followed.
  • Competition was tight for Finland’s fastest fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022. DNA (87.87 Mbps) raced past Elisa (86.54 Mbps) and Telia (86.13 Mbps) to take the top spot.

France

  • Orange earned the top spot as France’s fastest and most consistent mobile operator with a median mobile download speed of 81.03 Mbps and a Consistency Score of 89.8% during Q1 2022.
  • During Q1 2022, Orange dominated the competition as France’s fastest 5G provider by achieving a median 5G download speed of 366.42 Mbps. SFR followed at 247.32 Mbps.

Germany

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Vodafone was Germany’s fastest fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 108.67 Mbps.
  • Telekom achieved the fastest median mobile download speed (79.34 Mbps) and Consistency Score (90.9%) among German mobile operators during Q1 2022.
  • Telekom took the top spot for the fastest median 5G download speed in Germany at 193.09 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Hungary

  • Vodafone was Hungary’s fastest fixed broadband provider with a median download speed of 159.59 Mbps during Q1 2022. Vodafone also had the highest Consistency Score at 87.9% during Q1 2022.
  • Yettel was Hungary’s fastest mobile operator during Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 50.62 Mbps.

Latvia

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Balticom had the fastest median fixed broadband download speed in Latvia at 188.27 Mbps and highest Consistency Score (91.9%) during Q1 2022.
  • LMT had the fastest median mobile download speed in Latvia at 50.70 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Lithuania

  • Telia had the fastest median mobile download speed in Lithuania at 77.77 Mbps during Q1 2022. Tele2 followed at 41.75 Mbps, then BITE (29.81 Mbps).
  • Speedtest Intelligence reveals that Cgates had the fastest median fixed broadband speed in Lithuania at 99.50 Mbps during Q1 2022, edging out Penki (93.52 Mbps) and Telia (86.84 Mbps).

Luxembourg

  • Eltrona took the top spot as Luxembourg’s fastest fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022 by achieving a median download speed of 119.65 Mbps.
  • POST was the fastest mobile operator in Luxembourg, achieving a median download speed of 122.74 Mbps in Q1 2022.

Malta

  • Melita took the top spot as Malta’s fastest and most consistent fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 117.68 Mbps and Consistency Score of 85.2%.

Moldova

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Orange dominated as Moldova’s fastest fixed broadband provider, achieving a median download speed of 203.54 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Tiraspol showed the fastest median mobile download speed among Moldova’s most populous cities at 35.62 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Poland

  • Speedtest Intelligence revealed that UPC was the fastest fixed broadband provider in Poland, achieving a median download speed of 195.74 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Mobile operator Plus had the fastest median 5G download speed in Poland at 167.37 Mbps during Q1 2022, a slight gain over Q4 2021.

Slovakia

  • Orange took the top spot as Slovakia’s fastest mobile operator with a median download speed of 53.30 Mbps, edging out Telekom’s 45.90 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Orange also dominated as the fastest 5G operator in Slovakia with a median 5G download speed at 299.09 Mbps during Q1 2022. 4ka followed at 177.76 Mbps.
  • UPC took the top spot as Slovakia’s fastest and most consistent fixed broadband provider with a median download speed of 146.65 Mbps and a Consistency Score of 87.5% during Q1 2022.

Spain

  • Movistar provided the fastest and most consistent mobile experience among Spanish mobile operators during Q1 2022 with a median download speed of 52.44 Mbps and Consistency Score of 89.4%.
  • Vodafone was Spain’s fastest 5G provider by a wide margin, achieving a median download speed of 192.40 Mbps during Q1 2022.

North and South America

Argentina

  • Speedtest Intelligence revealed Personal was Argentina’s fastest mobile operator with a median download speed of 25.57 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • There was a tight race for the fastest median mobile download speed in Argentina’s most populous cities with no statistical winner during Q1 2022. However, Buenos Aires (25.26 Mbps) and La Plata (25.18 Mbps) led the way.

Brazil

  • Speedtest Intelligence reveals Claro was the fastest and most consistent mobile operator in Brazil during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 33.53 Mbps and Consistency Score of 84.6%.
  • Claro achieved the fastest median 5G download speed in Brazil at 72.35 Mbps during Q1 2022. TIM (62.80 Mbps) and Vivo (62.38 Mbps) followed.

Canada

  • Shaw was Canada’s fastest fixed broadband provider, earning a median download speed of 213.47 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • TELUS took the top spot as the fastest mobile operator in Canada, achieving a median download speed of 94.48 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Competition for the fastest 5G in Canada was tight during Q1 2022 with TELUS edging out Bell 162.47 Mbps to 155.71 Mbps, respectively.

Chile

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Entel was the fastest mobile operator in Chile with a median download speed of 23.13 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Temuco had the fastest median mobile download speed in Chile at 24.86 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Colombia

  • Cali had the fastest median mobile download speed among Colombia’s most populous cities at 15.32 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Among major device manufacturers in Colombia, Apple devices had the fastest median download speed at 17.20 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Ecuador

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Netlife was Ecuador’s fastest and most consistent fixed broadband provider during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 45.53 Mbps and Consistency Score of 75.5%.
  • CNT was the fastest and most consistent mobile operator in Ecuador during Q1 2022, with a median download speed of 33.11 Mbps and Consistency Score of 87.4%.

Guatemala

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Claro was the fastest and most consistent mobile operator in Guatemala during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 21.40 Mbps and Consistency Score of 80.5%.
  • Tigo was the fastest and most consistent fixed broadband provider in Guatemala with a median download speed of 26.56 Mbps and Consistency Score of 58.3% during Q1 2022.

Mexico

  • Speedtest Intelligence reveals Telcel was Mexico’s fastest mobile operator during Q1 2022, leading the market with a median download speed of 40.25 Mbps.
  • Totalplay was the fastest and most consistent fixed broadband provider in Mexico, achieving a median download speed of 49.33 Mbps and Consistency Score of 74.3% during Q1 2022.

Peru

  • According to Speedtest Intelligence, Winet Telecom was Peru’s fastest fixed broadband provider by a wide margin, achieving a median download speed of 102.83 Mbps during Q1 2022.
  • Claro was the fastest mobile operator in Peru during Q1 2022, earning a median download speed of 19.55 Mbps.

United States

  • Speedtest Intelligence reveals Verizon was the fastest fixed broadband provider in the United States during Q1 2022, edging out XFINITY with a median download speed of 184.36 Mbps to XFINITY’s 179.12 Mbps.
  • T-Mobile took the top spot as the fastest and most consistent mobile operator in the U.S. during Q1 2022, achieving a median download speed of 117.83 Mbps and a Consistency Score of 88.3% — both increases over Q4 2021.
  • Looking at tests taken only on 5G, T-Mobile achieved the fastest median 5G download speed at 191.12 Mbps during Q1 2022. Verizon also had a notable increase in 5G download speed during Q1 2022 over Q4 2021 , which was helped by turning on new C-Band spectrum in January.
  • The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra was the fastest popular device in the U.S. at 116.33 Mbps during Q1 2022.

Read the full market analyses and follow monthly ranking updates on the Speedtest Global Index.

Editor’s note: This article was updated on May 11, 2022.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Network Performance

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Ookla Research™ Articles
| April 6, 2022

How CHT Monitors Taiwan’s Largest Live Events with Ookla Wind® [Case Study]

Global Speeds

Taiwan is home to some of the most spectacular end-of-year celebrations in Asia, and local government entities planned several massive celebrations in different cities and regions of Taiwan to ring in New Year’s Eve 2022. With crowds of hundreds of thousands in attendance across six different venues, network congestion was a potential issue that could disrupt the festive experience and leave many frustrated with their operator’s mobile performance. It wasn’t enough for local operators to simply understand network conditions prior to the events, they also needed to monitor performance in real-time to proactively mitigate any congestion issues.

As the largest telecommunications company in Taiwan, ChungHwa Telecom (CHT) understood the stakes. CHT’s mission includes delivering fast, reliable network performance — which is especially critical during popular events where attendees want to upload their photos and videos to social media. CHT wanted to have testing and monitoring solutions in place to analyze performance at the events and act on any capacity-related performance issues in real-time.

CHT Speedtest Awards

The need for better live event monitoring

Traditional drive and walk testing solutions rely on the uploading and post-processing of massive log files — which just won’t work when meeting the immediate demands a large live event places on a network. While testing the venues beforehand can provide network insights, these tests only represent a snapshot in time during more typical usage conditions. 

CHT couldn’t expect their network to perform the same way during a live event with hundreds of thousands of people in a single location all simultaneously texting and uploading photos and videos of the live music, fireworks, and celebrations. To deliver a superior network experience would take real-time data collection, processing, and visualization.

Read the full case study to learn more about how Wind helps with live event monitoring.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Global Speeds

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Ookla Research™ Articles
| February 17, 2022

Illustrating the Worldwide State of 5G (Poster Download)

Global Speeds

Our recent report showed that the expansion of 5G was accompanied by some slowing in global average speeds, yet we cannot overstate how impressive the expansion of 5G truly is. It’s so impressive, in fact, that only a map can do it justice. We’ve created a downloadable poster to show how far 5G has come and to highlight some of the countries with exceptional 5G performance. 

This poster maps 5G coverage, highlights the countries with the fastest 5G, and charts the world capitals with the fastest 5G speeds. Download Ookla’s State of 5G Worldwide poster here to see the global state of 5G. It works as a desktop background or you can hang it on your wall. 

If you’re at Mobile World Congress this year, stop by Stand 2I28 in Hall 2, to pick up a poster in person and say hello.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Global Speeds

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Ookla

Ookla Research™ Articles
| February 14, 2022

How Batelco Uses Crowdsourced Network Intelligence to Continuously Improve Bahrain’s Top-Rated Mobile Network [Case Study]

Global Speeds

With digital transformation at the forefront of national policy and real estate development booming, Bahrain’s mobile operators have needed to expand their networks for fast, reliable connectivity throughout the Kingdom. To continue to provide the best network performance and coverage, Bahrain-based mobile operator Batelco determined that existing methods for evaluating and validating network performance would need to be modernized in order to scale with the nation’s developments.

Batelco’s mission is to serve and inspire customers by building, operating and investing in digital services, forefront technology, and connectivity. To that end, Batelco uses Ookla Cell Analytics™ to gain insights on customer network experience, indoor and outdoor RF conditions, and where to prioritize network investments.

Situation

Traditional methods for evaluating network performance and customer experience — such as on-site visits, customer surveys, and walk tests — can be time-consuming and costly. Furthermore, it simply isn’t possible to walk-test certain locations, such as private homes and businesses. As Bahrain’s demand for high-speed mobile coverage increased, it became clear that Batelco needed a scalable, data-driven method to determine where to invest in network improvements — and to identify areas where low-cost network optimizations would immediately improve the customer network experience.

Read the full case study

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Global Speeds

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Ookla Research™ Articles
| February 10, 2022

How Leading Operators Prepare for High-Profile Stadium Events Like Sunday’s Big Game

Global Speeds

Football fans are excited to cheer on their team at the Big Game in Los Angeles this weekend. They will also undoubtedly stream and share the experience with friends, family, and coworkers from their mobile devices. Operators are ready, having invested heavily to make the mobile experience as seamless as possible. Competitive insights from Ookla® Wind® help ensure their network is ready to show off their latest 5G spectrum, and deliver blazing fast speeds to the crowd. While we can’t share the results of game day live walk tests and real-time network benchmarking, we have a glimpse into what goes into optimizing for an event of this scale.

Wind has a long history of benchmarking the most challenging large stadium events

Network operators spend weeks and even months preparing for large stadium events because an outage, dead zone, or network congestion could become a high-profile publicity disaster. That’s why for the past nine years, the Wind team has helped network operators prepare and optimize their networks with multi-week preparatory engagements, including benchmark and optimization venue testing, live day-of RF command center support, and real-time analysis dashboards to make sure everything goes just right and any unforeseen problems are caught early and fixed.

Wind data previews what fans can expect from mobile networks on Sunday

The Wind team has already walk-tested inside and outside SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles multiple times with our handset-based Android Wind app starting weeks ahead of the big game to benchmark operator performance. We can’t reveal which operator has the best setup, but we can share anonymized data to show how operators perform in various locations through the upper concourse, between the 400-level and 500-level sections, for 4G LTE and 5G RSRP by provider, overall signal strength (RSRP) and signal quality (RSRQ) by provider over time, download and upload throughputs over time, as well as more technical 4G LTE and 5G data for carrier aggregation and modulation data.

The GIF above shows 4G LTE signal strength (RSRP) for operators during our walk test with red showing a weak RSRP signal strength and green and blue showing stronger RSRP signals. As you can see, the anonymized data for Operator A shows strong 4G LTE signals throughout the stadium, with strong signals in the north and south of the of the stadium and four areas of red, weak RSRP signals abutting the VIP boxes on both the east and west sides of the stadium. Operator B has a similar map, though Operator B has narrow bands of strong signal and weak signal overlapping on the south side of the stadium. Operator C had strong signals in the north and east of the stadium, but lower 4G LTE signal strength in the southwest corner with few areas having RSRP signals over -80 dBm.

Strong 5G RSRP signal was harder to find in SoFi stadium during our walk test. Operator A had pervasive weaker signals throughout, though only a few areas of very low RSRP strength in the north and south of the maps. Operator B had concentrated areas of stronger 5G RSRP signal strength near the north and south wind tunnel openings of SoFi’s sleek stadium design, though much weaker signals in the east and west of the map, and some veritable 5G dead zones near for VIP ticket holders to the west. Operator C had a concentrated strong area in the south of the map opposite YouTube Theater, though overall had weaker signals.

When viewing the walk test results over time, the overall average data shows similar signal strength (RSRP) between providers, though Operator A averaged a slightly higher signal strength (RSRP) over 4G LTE and 5G than the other operators.

Signal quality (RSRQ) showed more parity between operators on both 4G LTE and 5G as you can see above.

In addition to RF KPIs, the Wind walk test uses Speedtest Powered™ to measure where download and upload speeds peak and slow down throughout the stadium over time, both before and during the game. The above chart shows each provider’s download and upload speeds over the course of the walk test before the game, with each provider achieving a maximum download speed of over 1.70 Gbps, and average download speeds clocking in at 322 Mbps for Operator C, 706 Mbps for Operator B, and a blazing fast 914 Mbps for Operator C. Operator C also achieved maximum download speeds over 2.70 Gbps and upload speeds over 200 Mbps — much faster than its competitors.

The Wind walk test performed during the game showed what congestion can do to a network and why consistent monitoring is so important. The above chart shows every operator’s average download and upload speeds roughly halved during our in-game walk test compared to the pre-game walk test. Operator C achieved an average download speed of 76 Mbps, Operator B at 282 Mbps, and Operator A still had the fastest average download speed at 579 Mbps.

Wind goes beyond basic signal RSRP and RSRQ data

Wind expands beyond basic signal strength (RSRP) and signal quality (RSRQ) RF data as well. For example, we can see the amount of time above that carrier aggregation is utilized on each network and how many component carriers were aggregated. Additionally, we can see the utilization of various modulation types, with higher modulation schemes like QAM256 delivering more bits per unit of spectrum. Carrier aggregation with a large number of carriers and high modulation schemes can dramatically boost data speeds. 

These charts indicate how modulation scheme varies with signal strength (RSRP) and signal quality (RSRQ). The darker the shaded colors, the more data points were collected. Since the darker shaded band is concentrated towards QPSK for 4G LTE, it is apparent that QPSK seems to be the most commonly used modulation scheme across all three operators. One would expect more prevalence of higher order modulations, which contributes to higher throughput, when the signal strength and quality get better (right side of the X-axis).

The Wind team provides real-time insights and support

Traditionally, walk and drive testing can take 24-48 hours to process data, but Wind delivers instant results to help RF engineers make adjustments in real time to make everyone’s game day as great as possible. In a few days, Wind engineers will be part of network command centers with our team providing live, dynamic benchmarking reports using our Wind cloud-based analytics Live-Stream Report™ dashboard throughout the game. Our live competitive analyses will help operator RF engineers optimize their network by looking at real-time RF KPIs and Speedtest Powered data, and allow operators to see how other networks are performing during our live walk test. 

Wind Live-Stream Report™ at SoFi Stadium

Ookla® Wind® | January 30, 2022

The video above shows a short clip of the live Wind walk test from the semi-final game in Los Angeles on January 30, with green showing strong RSRP signal strength and red showing weaker RSRP on the map, and the refreshing blue and purple ribbon on the top left of Wind’s Android live edge reporting representing 4G LTE and 5G signal data, respectively. As you can see, the test shows moderate to low RSRP for this particular operator, with a jump in time around 10 seconds. At around 15 seconds, the video switches to the Speedtest Powered throughput data to show download and upload speeds on the network in real time. 

We’re as excited as anyone for Sunday’s big game. We’re even more excited to know that folks on networks that have prepared using Wind will be able to share their experience with everyone at home. If you’re interested in using Wind to prepare for a large, in-person event, please reach out.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Global Speeds

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Ookla

Ookla Research™ Articles
| February 2, 2022

Downdetector Celebrates 10th Anniversary as the World’s Leading Source of Real-Time Status Information

Downdetector

As we welcome the start of 2022, Downdetector® is celebrating 10 years of monitoring online service outages. Connectivity plays an integral role in how our society functions, and Downdetector has supported consumers and businesses during the most notable service outages of the last decade.

Take, for instance, the massive outage of Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger in October 2021. When these platforms went dark, billions of users felt the impact. Besides losing access to these social media platforms, which many businesses rely on for revenue generation, Facebook also serves as an online authenticator for countless internet applications. This resulted in many seemingly unrelated services becoming unavailable, making for an especially chaotic day on the internet. Throughout the incident, Downdetector provided a live global view of problem reports, helping consumers and service providers diagnose the root cause of the issue.

During this and other major service disruptions, Downdetector has kept the world informed with near-real-time analysis on millions of user-submitted reports – and we’ll be there for whatever outages may lie ahead as we continue to expand.

Downdetector began with the need for better outage detection

Feeling frustrated by the lack of incident information, founders Tom Sanders and Sander van de Graaf started Downdetector in 2012 as a platform to empower consumers to improve their internet experience with early outage detection. In particular, Dutch banking services were experiencing a high number of incidents at the time, so Sanders and van de Graaf created Downdetector to help the public identify connectivity disruptions. Downdetector proved to be so insightful that the Dutch parliament even used it to raise awareness with the former minister of finance.

Downdetector by the numbers

Since Downdetector launched, the platform has grown to serve hundreds of millions of users, tracking thousands of services across 47 countries and counting. Celebrating 10 years, here’s a quick snapshot of Downdetector’s global footprint.

Reducing downtime for the world’s leading service providers

By analyzing over 25 million user reports on Downdetector each month, Downdetector Enterprise™ gives businesses a direct line of sight into problems consumers are experiencing with their services. The world’s largest internet service providers, mobile network operators, banks, streaming entertainment services, social media platforms, online gaming providers, and other technology companies use the enterprise platform to rapidly diagnose both internal and external issues.

With early alerting, these businesses can rapidly assess the size, causes, and impacted locations of an incident. And with insights into third-party service issues that impact their own customer experience, they can quickly respond to incidents and proactively keep customers informed.

We’ll be there to continue providing insights on connectivity to both consumers and businesses as we keep expanding. If you’re ready to add real-time alerting and customer experience insights to your existing monitoring solutions, please visit our Downdetector Enterprise page to learn more.

Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.

Downdetector

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Ookla