ISPs Need to Do More to Improve Wi-Fi Performance in the Home

Posted on May 17, 2023May 16, 2023 by Mark Giles

Key messages

Wi-Fi woes continue. Ookla® Speedtest Intelligence® data shows Wi-Fi performance continues to lag behind ethernet performance within home networks in many advanced fixed broadband markets, with Wi-Fi speeds typically ranging from between 30-40% of ethernet speeds during Q1 2023.
Developed Asian and North American markets lead the charge to Wi-Fi 6/6E. Wi-Fi 4 and 5 remain the dominant Wi-Fi access technologies globally, accounting for a combined 89% of Speedtest® samples during Q1 2023. However, a number of advanced fixed broadband markets are rapidly migrating to Wi-Fi 6 and 6E, with China, Hong Kong (SAR), Singapore, Canada, and the U.S. leading the charge.
Growing Wi-Fi 6/6E adoption helps narrow the gap in Wi-Fi performance. In markets such as Canada, France, Germany, Singapore, Sweden, and the U.S., where the transition to fiber is more advanced, and where ISPs are actively driving adoption of Wi-Fi 6/6E routers, we see Wi-Fi performance closing the gap to ethernet. However, more needs to be done in other markets, where migration to more advanced fixed access networks is exposing the limitations of the installed base of Wi-Fi routers.
Router vendors pushing the envelope with Wi-Fi 7 capable launches. ASUS leads the market for Wi-Fi 6/6E routers among Speedtest samples, and both ASUS and other leading router vendors have been quick to launch Wi-Fi 7 capable routers. Despite this, Wi-Fi 6 and 6E remain the growing component of their installed bases. ASUS leads the market according to Speedtest Intelligence with 39% of its routers we sampled supporting Wi-Fi 6/6E during Q1 2023, well ahead of second placed NETGEAR with 26%.
Smartphone device support indicates Wi-Fi 6/6E should remain the immediate focus for ISPs. With the two largest smartphone vendors globally, Samsung and Apple, currently shunning Wi-Fi 7, ISPs waiting to see if they can leapfrog Wi-Fi 6E to Wi-Fi 7 should stay their hands. The fact that China still needs to allocate the 6 GHz spectrum band — key for Wi-Fi 6E and 7 — for unlicensed use is also significant, and appears to have weighed on the Wi-Fi 6E adoption among China’s leading Android smartphone manufacturers.

Wi-Fi performance continues to lag ethernet within the home

ISPs in advanced fixed broadband markets are increasingly looking to offer more advanced Wi-Fi routers and solutions such as mesh networks, which are designed to improve Wi-Fi coverage and performance. However, Speedtest Intelligence data shows that more needs to be done to improve Wi-Fi performance, which typically ranged from between 30-40% of ethernet speeds. Median Wi-Fi performance as measured by Speedtest will tend to lag behind median ethernet performance, depending on distance of the end-user device from the router, including any obstacles and signal interference the Wi-Fi signal needs to traverse to reach the device.

Our analysis of Speedtest Intelligence data reveals that driving greater adoption of more advanced Wi-Fi routers can help ISPs narrow the gap between Wi-Fi and ethernet performance, with ISPs in Canada, France, Germany, Singapore, Sweden, and the U.S. already successfully doing so over the past year.

Despite this, the results are not always positive, with the gap between Wi-Fi and ethernet performance widening, in particular in the U.K. and Taiwan. Where markets are rapidly migrating from more legacy fixed broadband technology to advanced cable and fiber connections, Wi-Fi performance can lag relative to ethernet, indicating a need to accelerate the adoption of more advanced Wi-Fi technologies.

Older generations of Wi-Fi 4 and Wi-Fi 5 remain dominant globally

While much of the focus of the device ecosystem is on spurring adoption of the latest Wi-Fi standards, there is a long way to go before even Wi-Fi 6 becomes a dominant standard globally. Based on Speedtest Intelligence data, the proportion of Wi-Fi tests by generation (a good proxy for adoption) shows that Wi-Fi 4 and Wi-Fi 5 remain the dominant router technology, with Wi-Fi 6 representing just under 10% as of February 2023, and Wi-Fi 7 showing very few samples. The share of samples from Wi-Fi 4 routers has fallen by 6 ppts year-over-year, while Wi-Fi 5’s share of samples has marginally increased.

Asian and North American ISPs lead the charge to Wi-Fi 6 and beyond

ISPs are the main driver behind the adoption of new Wi-Fi standards, as highlighted by a 2022 study by Parks Associates, which found that 52% of U.S. consumers acquired their router from their ISP. Rolling out more advanced routers to their customer bases enables them to take advantage of the increased performance of newer generations of Wi-Fi technology, and helps to ensure ISPs deliver faster speeds, particularly over fiber access networks.

Adoption of Wi-Fi 6 varies by market, even among the most developed fixed broadband markets globally. ISPs in a number of advanced fixed markets have already begun offering Wi-Fi 6E routers to their customer bases, with ISPs in North America in particular moving in this direction, including Bell Canada, Rogers, Telus, Verizon, XFINITY, Charter, and Frontier, as well as leading ISPs in advanced Asian and European markets.

Markets in Asia led the way on Wi-Fi 6 adoption, with China and Hong Kong both recording 42% adoption, followed by Singapore with 37%. Outside of Asia, North America showed the next highest level of adoption, with the U.S. and Canada recording 32% and 30%, respectively. European fixed markets lagged behind, with adoption ranging from 13% in the U.K., to 24% in Sweden. For markets such as Chile, which placed towards the top of the Ookla Speedtest Global Index™ for median fixed broadband speeds, a relatively low-level of Wi-Fi 6 adoption (8% in Q4 2022) signals further opportunity for ISPs in the market to boost performance.

The fastest growing markets, in terms of increasing share of Wi-Fi 6 of Speedtest samples year-over-year in Q1 2023, were Canada and Malaysia (+15 ppts), Singapore (+14 ppts), and Hong Kong (+12 ppts). While there was considerable variance between ISPs within each market, leading ISPs such as SmarTone (Hong Kong), DiGi (Malaysia), and ViewQwest (Singapore), are prompting a competitive response so that even ISPs with lower levels of Wi-Fi 6 adoption are prioritizing the technology and seeing adoption grow steadily.

Country	ISP	Wi-Fi 6 %, Q1 2023
Hong Kong (SAR)	SmarTone	62.4%
Canada	Bell pure fibre	57.3%
Singapore	ViewQwest	53.7%
Singapore	MyRepublic	50.3%
Malaysia	Digi	50.2%
Malaysia	Maxis	49.0%
Hong Kong (SAR)	NETVIGATOR	44.2%
Canada	Rogers	43.4%
Singapore	M1	41.7%
Singapore	SingTel	41.4%
Canada	Telus PureFibre	41.0%
Hong Kong (SAR)	HKBN	41.0%
Canada	Shaw	39.0%
Singapore	StarHub	35.6%
Hong Kong (SAR)	HGC	30.0%
Malaysia	TIME	28.8%
Malaysia	TM	21.5%

In addition to providing newer routers, ISPs are increasingly positioned to help consumers solve Wi-Fi performance issues in the home, such as offering mesh Wi-Fi solutions. For some ISPs, this has even taken precedence over offering newer Wi-Fi 6E routers, as they look to improved coverage within the home as a faster route to improving Wi-Fi performance.

In the U.K., BT has prioritized whole-home coverage over Wi-Fi 6E with its BT Complete Wi-Fi (mesh) offer, despite the U.K. regulator Ofcom having released the lower portion of the 6 GHz band for unlicensed use in 2020. In Canada, Telus, while having recently released a Wi-Fi 6E router for its broadband users, also offers its WiFi Plus package, which includes professional installation and “wall-to-wall coverage” throughout the home. Rogers also offers guaranteed Wi-Fi coverage throughout the home, as well as Wi-Fi 6E routers. Plume offers a subscription-based service, HomePass, across a number of markets, which allows users to add additional access points to help eradicate not-spots or poor Wi-Fi signal within the home and also offers solutions for ISPs looking to improve their Wi-Fi offerings. In Hong Kong, China Mobile Hong Kong (CMHK) was the first ISP in the market to offer a fiber-to-the-room service, while it and other ISPs such as NETVIGATOR offer consumers the option to subscribe to multiple channels over fiber with separate IP addresses, allowing them to divide their activities across channels and thereby help avoid congestion.

To capture the full performance benefits of Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7, countries must allocate 6 GHz spectrum for unlicensed use, therefore allowing Wi-Fi devices to access this higher frequency, higher capacity spectrum, and utilize wider channels. At present, according to the Wi-Fi Alliance, allocation of the lower portion of the 6 GHz spectrum band (5,925 MHz to 6,425 MHz) is common among developed economies, with some notable exceptions in some developed markets in Asia and Asia Pacific, in particular China, while allocation of the full 6 GHz band is more limited, available across North America and some Latin American markets, as well as Saudi Arabia and South Korea.

Wi-Fi 7 on the horizon as router vendors continue to push the envelope on performance

Wi-Fi performance continues to scale, and with Wi-Fi 7 routers and smartphones having launched in the second half of 2022, that trend is set to continue. In addition to higher throughput, successive Wi-Fi generations also support lower latency, helping to better support higher quality video streaming, cloud gaming, and future use cases linked to concepts such as the Metaverse and other uses of extended reality (XR).

The major silicon vendors, Broadcom, Qualcomm, and Mediatek, were quick to update their solutions to support the emerging Wi-Fi 7 standard, and hardware vendors have followed suit. Chinese vendor H3C was the first to launch with its H3C Magic BE18000 Wi-Fi 7 router in July 2022, and it has since been followed by other major vendors including tp-link, ASUS, and more recently NETGEAR. However, the prices of early Wi-Fi 7 routers that take advantage of Wi-Fi 7’s range of enhanced performance capabilities will be a barrier to entry for many, with tp-link’s flagship Archer BE900 currently retailing at a cost of $699.99.

Speedtest Intelligence data shows minimal Wi-Fi 7 adoption as of March 2023, however we are likely to see the same vendors drive Wi-Fi 7 adoption that are currently leading on Wi-Fi 6. Based on global Speedtest Intelligence samples, we see ASUS leading the market in Wi-Fi 6 penetration, with 39% of samples recorded using Wi-Fi 6 compatible routers. NETGEAR and Belkin followed, but for the remaining major router vendors, Wi-Fi 6 penetration currently stands at close to 10% or below. Wi-Fi 6E remains a small but growing subset of Wi-Fi 6 certified devices, currently standing at 7.7% of products based on the latest Wi-Fi Alliance data. Of these, a majority are either routers or smartphones, with an almost even split between the two.

Smartphone support indicates ISPs should focus on Wi-Fi 6E for now

With Samsung releasing its Galaxy S23 range in February 2023 without Wi-Fi 7 support, and Apple’s latest iPhone 14 smartphones limited to Wi-Fi 6, it’s clear that, for now, ISPs should prioritize the rollout of Wi-Fi 6/6E among their customer bases rather than consider leapfrogging to Wi-Fi 7. The Xiaomi Mi13 Pro was the first Wi-Fi 7 capable smartphone to hit the market, launching in December 2022, although it was limited to Wi-Fi 6E initially, requiring a software update to enable Wi-Fi 7. The availability of Wi-Fi 7 supporting Android smartphones will grow through 2023, enabled by SoCs from leading vendor Qualcomm with its flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, and MediaTek with its Dimensity 9200. Apple, on the other hand, lags on the latest Wi-Fi standard support, with the iPhone 14 series featuring Wi-Fi 6, and with its fall 2023 models rumored to be adding Wi-Fi 6E to their feature list.

Samsung, as the leading Android smartphone vendor globally, has the largest installed base of smartphones supporting Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E, and has stolen a march on its main rivals Xiaomi, OPPO, and Vivo. While the major Chinese smartphone vendors have launched Wi-Fi 7 compatible devices, the lack of assignment of 6 GHz spectrum for unlicensed use in China does appear to have held them back relative to brands such as Samsung and ASUS.

The outlook for Wi-Fi in the home

It’s clear from the gap between Wi-Fi and ethernet performance that ISPs need to do more to improve the customer experience for Wi-Fi users within the home. Part of the solution lies in rolling out more advanced generations of Wi-Fi technology, given Wi-Fi 4 and 5 remain the dominant technologies deployed globally. However, evidence linking increased adoption of Wi-Fi 6 to overall Wi-Fi closing the gap to ethernet performance is mixed, and validates the approach of ISPs looking to also offer mesh networking Wi-Fi solutions. Contact us to find out more about how Ookla insights can help you monitor the performance of your networks, and stay ahead of the competition.

New Speedtest Data Shows Starlink Users Love Their Provider

Posted on May 8, 2023May 10, 2023 by Josh Fomon

Satellite internet competition is heating up and Ookla® has exciting, fresh data from Q4 2022 and Q1 2023 for HughesNet, SpaceX’s Starlink, and Viasat in North America, South America, and the Caribbean, as well as new Starlink markets we haven’t yet featured in our ongoing satellite internet series.

This analysis includes Starlink Net Promoter Score (NPS) for metro and nonmetro internet connections in the United States, year-over-year data for Starlink in Canada, Chile, Mexico, and the U.S., and Starlink results from three new countries (Philippines, Nigeria, and Peru).

Starlink users in metro and nonmetro areas love Starlink, fixed broadband users dislike their internet service providers

Using Speedtest Intelligence®, we examined NPS ratings by Starlink users and all fixed broadband providers combined for “metropolitan” and “nonmetropolitan” counties as defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. NPS based on Speedtest® user responses after being asked how likely they are to recommend their provider to friends or family on a 0 to 10 scale. NPS ratings are categorized into Detractors (score 0-6), Passives (score 7-8), and Promoters (score 9-10), and is calculated as (% Promoters – % Detractors) x 100. Any NPS score above 0 indicates that a provider’s audience is more loyal than not.

As you see above, the difference in NPS between Starlink and all fixed broadband providers combined is stark: both metro and nonmetro Starlink far outperformed metro and nonmetro ISPs combined for NPS. Metro Starlink had a score of 31.94 compared to -23.62 for all metro fixed broadband providers combined, despite Starlink having a median download speed of 65.29 Mbps compared to 203.93 Mbps for all metro fixed broadband providers combined. Nonmetro Starlink had an even higher NPS at 42.21 compared to nonmetro ISPs at -21.27 — that’s especially notable given that Starlink’s median download speed was much closer to the median nonmetro fixed broadband speed at 72.18 Mbps to 100.41 Mbps.

Clearly, Starlink provides a much loved option for more rural, nonmetro users who often don’t have many good — if any — internet options. And the message is loud and clear: Starlink users are more than willing to recommend the service and love the internet they are getting.

Starlink speeds increased in Canada and the U.S. over the past two quarters, but are mixed year-over-year

As Starlink continues to become an increasingly popular and beloved option for users, especially those in more rural areas, steady increases in speeds in two large markets like Canada and the U.S. bode well for the internet provider. These increases come as major upgrades to Starlink’s satellite array are beginning, with Starlink having just launched 46 nextgen satellites on April 27, so we wouldn’t be surprised if speeds keep climbing across the globe.

In North America, all of the countries we surveyed saw slower median download and upload speeds during Q1 2023 than Q1 2022. However, Canada saw just about a 3 Mbps decrease in download speed from Q1 2022 to Q1 2023, with about a 28 Mbps increase over the past two quarters. The U.S., where Starlink has many more users, saw about a 24 Mbps decrease year-over-year for median download speeds, but at least a 13 Mbps increase during Q4 2022 and Q1 2023. Mexico, which saw 100+ Mbps median download speeds during Q1 2022, saw a roughly 49 Mbps dip year-over-year as more users signed up for the service; however, speeds leveled slightly with only an overall dip of about 8 Mbps during the past two quarters.

In South America, Chilean Starlink speeds slowed about 22 Mbps from Q1 2022 to Q1 2023, however, speeds only slowed about 8 Mbps over the past two quarters. Chile has continually ranked in the top four for fastest fixed broadband speeds on the Speedtest Global Index™ for over a year now.

Starlink in Canada blazed ahead as the fastest satellite provider in mainland North America

Speedtest Intelligence reveals that Starlink in Canada had the fastest download speed among satellite providers in mainland North America at 93.97 Mbps. That was about 40% faster than the runner-up, which was Starlink in the U.S. at 66.59 Mbps. Starlink in Mexico was next at 56.42 Mbps, and was faster than all fixed broadband providers in Mexico combined at 50.46 Mbps.

Viasat in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. made noticeable performance leaps over download speed from Q3 2022 when we last measured North American satellite providers. Canada went from 24.36 Mbps in Q3 2022 to 48.24 Mbps in Q1 2023, the U.S. from 28.07 Mbps to 36.47 Mbps, and Mexico from 16.14 Mbps to 24.06 Mbps. Hughesnet trailed over download speed in the U.S. (16.32 Mbps) and in Mexico (12.98 Mbps).

For upload speeds, all satellite providers trailed fixed broadband speeds in their respective countries, with Starlink in Canada achieving the fastest satellite upload speed at 9.60 Mbps, followed by Starlink in Mexico (8.47 Mbps) and the U.S. (7.74 Mbps). Viasat and HughesNet trailed behind.

Multi-server latency showed the stark difference of satellite internet’s real limitations, with the huge distances between satellite and users adding up to longer lag times than fixed broadband. Starlink had the only latencies under 100 ms among satellite providers, with Starlink in the U.S. having the lowest latency at 62 ms, followed by Canada (70 ms) and Mexico (97 ms). Viasat and HughesNet, which have farther geosynchronous orbits (GEO) than Starlink’s low-earth orbit (LEO), had much higher latencies.

Starlink in Chile raced ahead as the fastest satellite provider in South America

Starlink in Chile was the fastest satellite provider in South America during Q1 2023, edging out Starlink in Peru by about 5% with a median download speed at 84.62 Mbps to 77.17 Mbps. No satellite provider outperformed all fixed broadband providers combined in Q1 2023, but Starlink in Colombia and Brazil both reached median download speeds above 70 Mbps at 73.51 Mbps and 70.92 Mbps, respectively. HughesNet in Chile broke 20 Mbps at 21.01 Mbps, while Viasat in Brazil only reached 14.41 Mbps.

Satellites were outperformed by fixed broadband over upload speed in South America during Q1 2023, but Starlink had median upload speeds that ranged from 13.90 Mbps to 22.08 Mbps, the fastest being in Peru. HughesNet ranged from 2.12 Mbps to 3.21 Mbps, and Viasat in Brazil was at 1.42 Mbps.

Starlink’s multi-server latency dipped below 60 ms in three South American markets during Q1 2023: Peru (48 ms), Chile (54 ms), and Colombia (55 ms). Brazil followed at 75 ms, which was the next lowest. Viasat and HughesNet trailed far behind.

Starlink in Jamaica was the fastest Caribbean satellite provider

Speedtest Intelligence reveals that Starlink in Jamaica was the fastest satellite provider in the Caribbean at 83.79 Mbps during Q1 2023. Starlink was faster than all fixed broadband providers in Jamaica, and both Starlink and Viasat were faster than all providers combined in the Dominican Republic during Q1 2023. Starlink reached median download speeds of over 50 Mbps during Q1 2023 in Jamaica (83.79 Mbps), Puerto Rico (74.61 Mbps), and the U.S. Virgin Islands (57.08 Mbps), while it fell just short of that benchmark in the Dominican Republic (46.24 Mbps). Viasat had median download speeds of 37.07 Mbps and 33.37 Mbps in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, respectively, during Q1 2023, while HughesNet had a median download speed of 23.74 Mbps in Puerto Rico during Q1 2023.

Upload speeds showed a bit more parity between satellite providers with only Starlink in Jamaica rising above 10 Mbps with a median upload speed of 13.45 Mbps during Q1 2023. Starlink had median upload speeds ranging from 6.65 Mbps to 13.45 Mbps, HughesNet had a median upload speed at 3.78 Mbps in Puerto Rico, and Viasat had upload speeds of 1.02 Mbps and 1.03 Mbps in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, respectively, during Q1 2023.

For multi-server latency, Caribbean satellite users saw higher multi-server latencies than mainland North and South America with only Starlink in Jamaica breaking under 100 ms. While fast speeds for remote users are always going to be appreciated, multi-server latencies of over 100 ms do make some internet uses much harder to do well like live gaming and video conferencing.

New Q1 2023 Starlink countries show promising initial results

Speedtest Intelligence data shows new Starlink data in three countries during Q1 2023, including Nigeria, Peru, and the Philippines, where Starlink is still a nascent provider with limited market share. Median download speeds for new Starlink countries were: 110.78 Mbps in the Philippines, 77.17 Mbps in Peru, and 61.75 Mbps in Nigeria during Q1 2023.

Starlink had slower upload speeds than all fixed broadband providers combined in all of the new countries except Nigeria, which was too close to call at 11.17 Mbps to 10.70 Mbps. Starlink had a much higher latency than fixed broadband providers in the Philippines (162 ms) in Q1 2023, though it came very close in Nigeria 57 ms to 46 ms.

It should be noted that satellite constellations have limited network bandwidth capacity, which may affect the consumer experience as more users sign up for the service. Starlink’s reach within these markets will also be limited by the cost of equipment (CPE) in particular, which ranges from PEN 1,750 ($470) in Peru, to PHP 29,320 ($530) in the Philippines and NGN 268,584 ($590) in Nigeria (prices correct at time of publication).

The 2023 space revolution is off to a huge start

Here are some major updates about what’s next for various different satellite competitors:

Amazon’s Project Kuiper showcases low-cost customer satellite terminals

After Amazon’s Project Kuiper 3,236 satellite LEO constellation was greenlit by the FCC, Amazon swiftly moved to showcase its consumer terminals in March. These new terminals have different tiered models, which are promised to deliver 100 Mbps and 400 Mbps models for consumers and businesses, and 1 Gbps models for “enterprise, government, and telecommunications applications that require even more bandwidth.” Furthermore, Amazon is getting into the chipset business and producing their own 5G modem chip, which will feature in each terminal.

Viasat launched its Viasat-3 arrays

On April 30, 2023, Viasat launched the first of three long-awaited Viasat-3 arrays, which aims to provide 1 Terabit per second (Tbps) of network capacity on each satellite, double that of the entire operating fleet. Add two more satellites and Viasat could raise the throughput up to 500-600% of its current network capacity. That could allow its users to experience 100+ Mbps connections — a huge improvement for many consumers. We’ll be eagerly anticipating results in the coming quarters.

Eutelsat, OneWeb, and Intelsat are making big moves

While the merger of Eutelsat and OneWeb has yet to be fully completed, both satellite operators inked major deals with Intelsat to add more global satellite capacity. Furthermore, OneWeb launched an additional 36 LEO satellites into orbit in late March 2023, providing additional options for many of its resellers.

European Union greenlights multi-orbit constellation

The European Union has approved its multi-orbit, €6 billion constellation plan, which includes GEO, MEO, and LEO arrays, and will offer connectivity to all EU citizens. The project will support EU connectivity priorities including the economy, environment, security and defense, and is hoping to launch in 2024, and be fully operational by 2027.

HughesNet aiming to launch Jupiter 3 array in Q2 2023

Incumbent satellite internet provider HughesNet has revealed its new Jupiter 3 array, which is designed to offer 500 Gbps over Ka-band and will allow HughesNet to provide consumers offerings of 50 Mbps and 100 Mbps. While the array still doesn’t have an official launch, the Jupiter 3 array is “doubling the size of the Hughes JUPITER fleet over North and South America.”

Ookla will continue monitoring new satellite internet developments

As 2023 continues to shape up as a pivotal year for satellite internet providers, we’ll be watching the sky to make sure providers are providing the connectivity consumers need. We’ll continue our series next quarter with Q1 and Q2 2023 data from Asia, Europe, Oceania, and any new countries where Starlink launches, and be back with Africa, North America, and South America data in Q4 2023. In the meantime, be sure to download the Speedtest® app for Windows and Mac computers or for iOS or Android for devices and see how your satellite internet stacks up to our findings.

Editor’s note: This article was updated on May 10 with clarifying details and an updated chart.

Starlink Resurgence? Speeds Increase in Europe and Oceania

Posted on February 22, 2023February 22, 2023 by Josh Fomon

Ookla® is back with exciting, fresh data from Q3 and Q4 2022 for SpaceX’s Starlink and Sky Logic in Europe and Oceania, as well as new Starlink markets we haven’t yet featured in our ongoing series on satellite internet. With the FCC greenlighting Amazon’s Project Kuiper and many other exciting satellite developments launching this year, we’re certain all eyes will be on the sky in 2023 as new orbital connectivity options become available for consumers.

This analysis includes Starlink results from six new countries, and data for Starlink and Sky Logic in Europe and Starlink in Oceania. We also examine how Starlink’s internet performance has changed over the past year in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, and the United Kingdom.

Starlink is mostly speeding up again from Q3 to Q4 2022, but is still slower than a year ago

As Starlink rides the wave of becoming an increasingly popular connectivity option for consumers, we’ve seen the service speed up and then slow down year-over-year in most markets. However, Q4 2022 data shows many countries are experiencing a modest rise in median download speeds when compared to Q3 2022. That’s encouraging for consumers, especially as Starlink hit over 1 million users in Q4 2022, and could be a sign that Starlink seems to be maturing its constellation’s capacity. That’s particularly intriguing as Starlink launches more next-gen satellites, which were first deployed at the tail end of Q4 2022 and will most likely show up in Q1 2023 results.

In Europe, all the countries we evaluated for year-over-year median download speeds were slower for Q4 2022 than Q4 2021 when there were fewer users on each network. Most countries showed between 10-20% slower speeds in Q4 2022 than what users experienced in Q4 2021, including Ireland (at least 11% slower), Austria (at least 13%), Portugal (at least 14%), Italy (at least 15%), Germany (at least 16%), and the U.K. (at least 19%). Users in France saw very similar speeds year over year, with just a 4% decrease from Q4 2021 to Q4 2022, while users in Poland saw a large decrease (at least 56% slower), and users in the Netherlands (at least 21%) and Belgium (at least 28%) saw substantial decrease during the same period.

In Oceania, Starlink year-over-year results were mixed, with Starlink’s download speed in Australia 24% slower in Q4 2022 than during Q4 2021, while in New Zealand it was 4% faster in Q4 2022 than Q4 2021.

Starlink in Denmark and Switzerland had the fastest satellite internet in Europe during Q4 2022

Speedtest Intelligence® reveals there was no fastest satellite provider in Europe during Q4 2022, though Starlink in Denmark (147.52 Mbps) and Switzerland (136.03 Mbps) led the pack for fastest median download speed. In all, Starlink download speeds were faster than 100 Mbps in 10 out of 15 European countries during Q4 2022 — a rise from just five out 15 in Q3 2022.

Starlink outperformed fixed broadband providers over download speed in eight countries, including: Austria (105.67 Mbps), Belgium (104.84 Mbps), Croatia (102.99 Mbps), Czechia (64.67 Mbps), Germany (94.37 Mbps), Ireland (103.39 Mbps), Italy (101.06 Mbps), and the U.K. (96.79 Mbps). Fixed broadband providers were faster than satellite providers analyzed in Denmark, France, Netherlands, and Poland. Results were too close to call in Sweden with fixed providers at 106.73 Mbps and Starlink at 101.83 Mbps, as well as Portugal with Starlink at 108.02 Mbps and fixed broadband at 117.97 Mbps. Skylogic was too close to call between the median fixed broadband speed in Italy at 55.50 Mbps to 59.40 Mbps, and had download speeds faster than 40 Mbps in France (44.46 Mbps) and Sweden (48.09 Mbps).

For upload speeds, every country’s combined fixed broadband providers had faster median upload speeds than every satellite provider, though Starlink in Portugal had the fastest upload speed among satellite providers at 20.86 Mbps. All Starlink upload speeds ranged between 10-20 Mbps except Poland (9.79 Mbps) and Denmark (8.04 Mbps).

Multi-server latency for all satellite providers was higher than fixed broadband providers in every European country in Q4 2022, which ranged from 12.34 ms in Sweden to 23.46 ms in Italy. However, Starlink had a median multiserver latencies of less than 60 ms in the U.K. (53.24 ms), Portugal (56.81 ms), and the Netherlands (58.85 ms). Most latencies were between 60-75 ms, with Poland having the highest latency at 86.46 ms — still low enough to have a good quality of experience and be able to video chat.

Starlink in New Zealand was the fastest satellite provider in Oceania

During Q4 2022, Starlink in New Zealand had the fastest median download speed among satellite providers in Oceania at 124.72 Mbps, followed by Starlink in Australia (106.43 Mbps), and Starlink in Tonga (35.15 Mbps). However, New Zealand fixed broadband outperformed Starlink, while Starlink in Australia outperformed fixed broadband providers. In Tonga, speeds were too close to call.

Speedtest Intelligence shows Starlink falling behind fixed broadband providers for median upload speeds in New Zealand (16.89 Mbps) and Australia (11.38 Mbps), while Tonga was again too close to call.

Multi-server latency was higher over Starlink than fixed broadband in all three countries we surveyed in Oceania during Q4 2022. However, Starlink’s median latency was under 50 ms in New Zealand (48.11 ms), which is a very exciting development for consumers, especially with latency becoming an increasingly important metric. Starlink latency in Australia was higher at 65.52 ms, while Tonga followed at 88.81 ms.

New Q4 2022 Starlink countries show very promising results

Speedtest Intelligence shows the six new countries where we found new Starlink data are off to a roaring start in Q4 2022, which include Bulgaria, Finland, Jamaica, Japan, Latvia, and Malta. Starlink had faster median download speeds than the country’s respective fixed broadband providers combined in two countries: Bulgaria (110.76 Mbps versus 65.69 Mbps), and Jamaica (87.43 Mbps vs. 48.34 Mbps), while results were too close to call in the remaining four markets. However, Starlink showed promising 100+ Mbps speeds in Japan (156.94 Mbps), Finland (102.70 Mbps), and Malta (101.36 Mbps).

Median upload speeds for Starlink lagged behind fixed broadband providers in all markets, though Malta was too close to call (20.40 Mbps for Starlink and 20.25 Mbps for fixed broadband). Starlink upload speeds ranged from about 14 Mbps to 20 Mbps in every market.

Consumers and enterprises stand to benefit from satellite developments in 2023

Starlink dominated headlines in 2022 — and for good reason. They’ve gained over 1 million users worldwide, will be available in connected vehicles, planes, RVs, and ships, partnered with T-Mobile to bring Starlink to mobile devices, and launched their second-gen satellites at the end of 2022. But that could very seriously change in 2023 with multiple competitors deploying major offensives in the satellite market. We’ll say it again: there is a new space race for connectivity being waged, and we’re just at the tip of what’s to come.

Here are some major updates about what’s next for various different satellite competitors:

Amazon’s Project Kuiper approved by the FCC

The biggest news concerning satellite connectivity is the FCC approving Amazon’s Project Kuiper constellation, which will include 3,236 satellites in an LEO array. On two fronts, this poses two potential challenges for Starlink: on one hand, Amazon has the global reach, scale, and consumer base that being one of the largest companies in the world provides. On the other, Blue Origin is a direct competitor of SpaceX, and won’t have to rely on the service or other vendors to launch their array into space. Amazon is in a good position to compete and Project Kuiper could become a major player if their prototypes, which will be launched in early 2023, reach speeds anywhere close to competing with broadband internet.

Viasat set to launch Viasat-3 arrays around April 8, 2023

Long-term incumbent satellite internet provider, Viasat, has a big year ahead after years of planning and providing connectivity to remote locations around the world. Viasat is finally set to launch its Viasat-3 array, which aims to provide 1 Terabit per second (Tbps) of network capacity on each satellite, allowing its users to experience 100+ Mbps connections; that’s a huge improvement for the mainly GEO provider. While consumers likely won’t see these results until Q4 2023, we’re very excited to see how Viasat improves its network.

Eutelsat’s merger with OneWeb approved by Eutelsat board, second-gen array being planned

One of the biggest mergers in recent years among satellite providers has jumped a major hurdle and was approved by the Eutelsat board. While the combined entities still have to be approved by shareholders and regulators, this merger could expand both companies’ market share, particularly in India, which has fast become an important satellite market. Furthermore, OneWeb is already planning a second-gen satellite, which they’re aiming to launch in 2025.

European Commission forges ahead on Constellation Iris

The European Union has been working to create its own satellite constellation since 2020, and during November 2022, agreed to a plan to commit €2.4 billion for a third satellite array named Iris, in addition to Galileo and Copernicus. The project, which includes GEO, MEO, and LEO arrays, will help support EU connectivity priorities including the economy, environment, security, and defense, and is hoping to launch in 2024, and be fully operational by 2027.

HughesNet aiming to launch Jupiter 3 array in H1 2023

Incumbent satellite internet provider HughesNet is planning to launch its new Jupiter 3 array in the first half of 2023, which will help expand its network capacity, “doubling the size of the Hughes JUPITER fleet over North and South America.” While the Jupiter 3 array will still be a GEO constellation, the added network capacity will alleviate congested networks and give consumers more bandwidth to use the internet.

Ookla will continue monitoring new satellite internet developments

As 2023 continues to shape up as a pivotal year for satellite internet providers, we’ll be watching the sky to make sure providers are providing the connectivity consumers need. We’ll continue our series next quarter with Q4 2022 and Q1 2023 data from North and South America and any new countries where Starlink launches, and be back with Europe and Oceania data in Q3 2023. In the meantime, be sure to download the Speedtest® app for Windows and Mac computers or for iOS or Android for devices and see how your satellite internet stacks up to our findings.

Latency is the Next Frontier of Consumer Experience. Are You Ready?

Posted on February 8, 2023February 6, 2023 by Ookla

Internet service providers and mobile operators have spent decades optimizing their networks to provide the best speeds possible so consumers can achieve seamless connected experiences. However, the internet and how we use it is changing; bandwidth is no longer all that matters for networks operators to deliver on the possibilities that a connected world can offer. While latency has always affected connectivity, latency and responsiveness metrics have become increasingly critical to network operators focused on delivering a superior connected experience and supporting evolving consumer use cases. Read on to learn why latency matters to quality of experience, why you need to consider latency now, and how Ookla® can help you measure what matters most.

Bandwidth is now an economics problem, latency is the new opportunity horizon.

Why latency matters

A 2009 study detailed that every 100 ms of additional latency on Amazon.com, cost the company 1% of revenue. While speed has always been the focus for optimization, since the end user delay was caused by the delay of downloading data assets, now that bandwidth has increased for many people around the globe, the bottleneck for these folks is the time delay between two systems communicating.

Latency is the bidirectional roundtrip time between two endpoints.

Latency matters for every online experience. While best known for gaming, video conferencing, and streaming video, the underlying internet protocols powering modern experiences rely on bidirectional communication to negotiate encryption keys, determine routing paths, and request resources. As a result, the typical request on the internet requires two to five round trip communications between various entities over different latency sensitive protocols (DNS, TCP, TLS, and QUIC/H3).

On a gigabit connection, 500 ms of additional latency dramatically affects the page load time. It can take 7x to load a full webpage when latency is high, as seen in the example below.

In addition to web browsing, video and voice calling needs a latency below 300 ms to provide an acceptable experience. This is a physiological threshold — below 300 ms — where the human brain can manage the delay and not speak over other parties. Above the 300 ms barrier, it’s difficult to maintain a coherent conversation.

Think back to the Amazon example above: You may not be directly losing money when your customers see a slow page load due to high latency, but you are providing a poor network experience that will result in increased customer service costs and churn. In fact, one study from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Akamai concluded “…an increase in the startup delay beyond 2 seconds causes viewers to abandon the video. Using regression, we show that an additional increase of the startup delay by 1 second increases the abandonment rate by 5.8%.” Of course, network operators don’t control the full experience here, and things like CDN location can really affect an end user’s experience, but consumers don’t have visibility into that and the more you can optimize the portions you do control, the less negative feedback you’ll receive.

Latency will matter even more in the very near future

The future of the internet is bidirectional where download and upload communication are necessarily performed simultaneously. Whether AR and VR or self-driving vehicles, this will require dramatic improvements in latency.

How Ookla measures latency

Ookla uses three main measures of latency, each of which helps you understand a specific set of issues.

Unloaded latency

Unloaded latency is our classic measure of latency, looking at the time it takes for a bidirectional round trip on the last mile of a connection under no load. This is a best case measure of latency.

Multi-server latency

Multi-server latency measures latency to multiple connections and then takes an average. This is a better representation of a customer’s experience as their connection pulls media and other information from a variety of locations around the internet. Poor multi-server latency can show the need for improvement in peering arrangements and transit. This metric tests to on-net and off-net locations.

Loaded latency

Loaded latency measures latency under a large load. We represent both download loaded latency and upload loaded latency and this metric gives an approximation of how a network performs with poor buffer management or if a background app is using a lot of bandwidth.

Global latency today

Given the importance of latency to consumer experience today, it’s clear that there is much room for improvement in latency at a global level. Investments in better latency will make for major improvements in connected experiences overall, including video calling, internet shopping, and other day-to-day internet activities.

Latency is key to present user experiences, and will be the defining factor for unlocking future connected opportunities. The first step to improving latency on your network is to have the data to make informed decisions. Look forward to future articles where we dive into how to use this data to identify common areas of latency bottlenecks and optimize your network. If you’d like to discuss how our data can help you improve latency on your network, stop by Booth 2i28 in Hall 2 at MWC.

The United States — Ripe for Converged Networks

Posted on December 5, 2022December 8, 2022 by Mark Giles

Key messages

Moves by mobile operators in the U.S. to offer fixed-wireless home broadband services are further blurring the lines between fixed and mobile networks. Cable operators in the U.S. are responding to this competitive challenge by driving the U.S. market further towards convergence, in the form of fixed-mobile bundling. This trend is driving greater competition in the market, lower prices, and more choice for consumers.
Speedtest Intelligence® data shows opportunities for cable companies and the big-three national operators to leverage positions of strength in one access technology to cross-sell to consumers and drive adoption of bundled services.
U.S. operators should look to European operators’ experiences with service bundling, where they have been shown to reduce churn and offer ARPU uplift opportunities, but require operators shift from a focus purely on price, to driving improvements in the consumer experience.
Fixed and mobile networks are already being used in tandem. For example in the U.K. BT includes a SIM within its Halo routers to offer redundancy to its fixed broadband customers. And already in the U.S. Comcast utilizes its XFINITY Wi-Fi hotspot network to provide high capacity coverage for its customers, allowing it to improve network performance in areas where 5G signal typically struggles to penetrate, while also offloading mobile traffic to its fixed network.
Looking to the future, we anticipate more strategic moves to drive improved consumer experiences as the convergence of fixed and mobile networks continues. The emerging set of Wireless Wireline Convergence (WWC) standards being developed by 3GPP and the BBF offer up some unique capabilities, but as ever, vendor and operator support will be key.

Blurring the lines between fixed and mobile networks

Fixed and mobile networks are becoming increasingly complementary, extending the reach of internet connectivity, performance, and reliability. Fixed networks support wireless devices through Wi-Fi offload in the home and via public and operator Wi-Fi access points, often in locations where cellular signals face propagation challenges. Additionally, wireless networks can provide cellular redundancy to fixed broadband services, often via a SIM added to the router.

Cable companies have offered mobile services for some time now via MVNO agreements, (Cox is set to be the latest example), and are able to utilize their Wi-Fi hotspot networks to offer greater coverage and capacity to subscribers. Ookla® data indicates that for markets such as the U.S. that have widespread fixed broadband penetration, mobile users spend approximately 75% of time on average connected to Wi-Fi networks, as opposed to wireless networks. This number ranged from a low of 67.5% for T-Mobile, to a high of 80.0% for cable operator Comcast’s XFINITY. This helped XFINITY and Spectrum rank as fastest overall mobile service across their respective service areas when considering 5G and Wi-Fi access combined.

On the flip side of the coin, the growth in fixed-wireless access (FWA), particularly via higher-speed 5G spectrum, offers an alternative to existing fixed networks. In the U.S., fixed wireless is already being used to cover locations that would be too costly to lay fiber to reach, and is also being offered as a competitive alternative to existing fixed networks. Both Verizon and T-Mobile have championed this approach, and are seeing strong growth in their respective fixed-wireless customer bases, although fixed wireless still represents a small proportion of overall fixed broadband subscribers.

Fixed and wireless technologies also play an important role in today’s backhaul networks, with fiber instrumental in extending the reach and capacity of mobile networks, and microwave point-to-point wireless connections still common in many parts of the world for backhaul. Throw satellite connectivity into the mix via the growth of LEO constellations, and it’s clear that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution for providing universal connectivity — a blend of technologies is required.

Fixed-mobile bundling — initially focused on cost savings for consumers

The growth of fixed-mobile (convergent) bundles in the U.S. is occurring amidst a slowing of the global economy, with inflation running into double digits in many markets, pushing them towards a possible recession. This could well spur the adoption of fixed-mobile bundles in the U.S., paralleling the experience of many European markets during the last prolonged economic downturn which began in 2008. In this economic environment, a number of European operators introduced convergent bundles, offering them at an overall discount to the discrete underlying services.

While not prevalent in all European markets, fixed-mobile bundles have taken hold in many key markets, championed by regional powerhouses including Telefonica and Orange. Orange even goes so far as to highlight convergence as the “bedrock of our strategy,” and has pursued M&A across Europe in order to combine fixed and mobile assets in order to pursue a convergent strategy.

Initially, European operators pursuing convergent bundles saw a reduction in churn, as including more services within a bundle for multiple people in a household made these customers stickier. Over time, operators looked to drive increased ARPU by including additional services, particularly broadcast television and video streaming. For consumers, fixed-mobile bundles also offer managerial benefits, adding the convenience of a single bill for all telecoms services in a household and gives the account holder more control over telecoms expenditure as a result.

More recently, in European markets where fixed and mobile bundles have become commonplace, we’re seeing moves to expand the value offered to customers, to avoid ARPU erosion. For Movistar, this included a recent rebrand of its Fusion offering to MiMovistar, and a move to include services such as health, gaming, and security. The key lesson for U.S. telcos is to avoid a race to the bottom that will harm margins and ultimately investment. Instead, telcos should focus on extending the value delivered from fixed-mobile bundles. For cable companies with MVNO agreements driving Wi-Fi offload for their mobile customers can help improve performance. It also keeps wholesale costs down, allowing them to be more aggressive with their mobile pricing.

U.S. fixed-mobile service overlap — battle lines drawn

To estimate the current overlap in fixed and mobile subscriptions by provider and look at bundling opportunities within the U.S., we used Speedtest Intelligence data to show the share of Speedtest® samples for mobile devices conducted via wireless networks versus Wi-Fi. Cable operators Spectrum (Charter) and XFINITY (Comcast) show very high degrees of overlap, as explained by their sales model where mobile is not offered as a standalone service, but only as an add-on to their fixed broadband subscriptions services.

Overlap in fixed and wireless subscriptions (Q3 2022 | Speedtest^® Data)

WIRELESS	WIRELINE AT&T	T-Mobile	Verizon	Spectrum	XFINITY	Other
AT&T Wireless	20.5%	0.1%	4.9%	21.7%	21.2%	31.6%
T-Mobile	11.2%	0.2%	7.8%	24.9%	26.1%	29.9%
Verizon Wireless	9.2%	0.1%	10.9%	23.1%	21.3%	35.3%
Spectrum	2.2%	0.1%	1.0%	85.7%	2.0%	9.1%
XFINITY	2.4%	0.1%	1.3%	2.1%	87.5%	6.7%

Three main takeaways emerge from the data:

AT&T has a larger wireline footprint than Verizon, and this shows over 20% of its wireless customers also access AT&T’s fixed broadband service according to Ookla Speedtest data versus Verizon’s 10.9%. Both companies have opportunities to drive further mobile uptake among their fixed user bases.
T-Mobile has a greenfield opportunity for fixed wireless, where strong 5G network performance should help it capitalize on both mobile and fixed net additions.
Sizeable proportions of the big three’s mobile user base (in excess of 40%) accessing fixed Wi-Fi via either Charter or Comcast, represent a significant opportunity for the cable companies to expand their mobile user bases.

Beyond fixed-mobile bundling — driving experiential improvements to network service

The advent of 5G, alongside the COVID-19 pandemic, has helped drive growth in the use of data intensive services including video calling, video streaming, and mobile gaming. As these services continue to grow in popularity, and as consumers begin to demand more immersive extended reality (XR) experiences that push the boundaries of today’s networks, so operators will need to improve the performance of both fixed and mobile networks, while also looking to opportunities for network convergence to support enhanced service experiences and reduced operational costs.

High-throughput 5G service utilizes higher frequency spectrum bands than has been used for previous generations of mobile technology. These spectrum bands have lower propagation properties, particularly in-building, mandating that operators further densify their networks to offer consistent performance. Operator Wi-Fi hotspot networks can offer an alternative to this, providing a secure fixed network connection in locations where 5G signals can often degrade. In the U.S., cable companies have also begun to offer differentiated network speeds to their mobile subscribers when connected to their Wi-Fi networks, provisioning faster network speeds to capable smartphones.

Standards bodies have also identified a need to help drive fixed-mobile convergence. The development of Wireless Wireline Convergence (WWC) standards by 3GPP and the Broadband Forum (BBF) seeks to allow operators to converge existing fixed and mobile technology stacks using a common 5G core network. In doing so, operators will move to a single control plane for fixed and mobile sessions, enabling them to offer customers seamless connectivity via fixed and mobile access while also allowing them to aggregate the performance of both access networks to help drive enhanced performance and reliability. In doing so, this will allow operators to streamline the set of network functions and processes required to operate their networks, while also allowing them to simplify their Operational and Business Support Systems (OSS and BSS).

Leading operators such as Deutsche Telekom and BT are actively moving in this direction, with Deutsche Telekom in September conducting a proof of concept lab trial of WWC standards to steer traffic from a 5G residential gateway and route traffic along the entire wireline access chain to the core network. According to Ahmed Hafez, VP of network convergence at Deutsche Telekom, “convergence will allow us to optimize our network assets and deliver new, differentiated service experiences to our customers regardless of the access used.” BT has also signaled its intent to move to a single transport and core network serving both fixed and mobile services as it looks to accelerate the convergence of its mobile and fixed services in the U.K. under a single brand, EE.

While it’s clear that pioneers in the industry are looking to push the envelope on fixed-mobile convergence, there’s still a long way to go. We look forward to more operator trials of WWC standards, but ultimately it will also require the vendor ecosystem to integrate these standards in their product roadmaps to help spur adoption. If you’re interested to find out more about Ookla Speedtest Intelligence, and its wealth of fixed and mobile consumer initiated data and insights, please get in touch.

Starlink Slowed in Q2, Competitors Mounting Challenges

Posted on September 20, 2022December 1, 2022 by Josh Fomon

Ookla® has covered SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet for over a year now with our ongoing series on satellite internet performance. We’ve seen Starlink launch in new locations across the world, and while some speeds have shown signs of slowing down from their initial launches, the newly announced T-Mobile partnership with Starlink could extend the benefit of satellite connections to the mobile market.

Today, we have fresh data on satellite performance during Q2 2022 in Europe, Oceania, North America, and South America. This analysis includes results from eight additional countries, two new providers, and expanded data for Starlink, HughesNet, and Viasat. We also examine how Starlink’s internet performance has changed over the past year in Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Starlink speeds decreased in every country we surveyed over the past year as more users sign up for service

Speedtest Intelligence® reveals that median download speeds for Starlink fell across Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, the U.K, and the U.S., dropping between 9% and 54% from Q2 2021 to Q2 2022 as more users signed up for the service. However, Starlink still reached a median download speed of at least 60 Mbps in North America during Q2 2022, which is more than enough for at least one connected device to do most everything on the internet including streaming video, downloading games, and chatting on video with friends and family.

Upload speeds also slowed on Starlink, with speeds decreasing across all of the countries we’ve tracked over the past year. Latency fared a little better with latency remaining relatively flat (though high when compared to fixed broadband) in most countries. New Zealand was the outlier, with latency dropping 23 ms. For most users, we still suspect these dips are still worthwhile for areas that have no service, slow service, or few affordable options for fast internet.

Starlink in Puerto Rico was the fastest satellite provider in North America

Starlink in Puerto Rico had the fastest satellite internet in North America during Q2 2022 with a median download speed of 112.22 Mbps, followed by Starlink in Mexico (80.17 Mbps), Canada (75.73 Mbps), and the U.S. (62.53 Mbps). Starlink in Puerto Rico and Mexico was faster than their countries’ fixed broadband providers combined (74.80 Mbps and 45.50 Mbps, respectively), while fixed broadband in the U.S. (150.12 Mbps) and Canada (106.41 Mbps) was faster than each country’s satellite providers.

In every country except Mexico, fixed broadband upload speeds were faster than satellite speeds. Starlink in Mexico edged out fixed broadband providers 14.48 Mbps to 12.20 Mbps. Latency was higher for every satellite provider compared to fixed broadband. Starlink in the U.S. had the lowest median latency among satellite providers at 48 ms.

Starlink outperformed fixed broadband average in 16 European countries

Speedtest Intelligence shows Starlink was fast in Europe during Q2 2022, outperforming fixed broadband median download speed in 16 countries and reached download speeds over 100 Mbps in 10 countries. In contrast, fixed broadband only achieved median download speeds over 100 Mbps in six countries: Romania, Spain, Portugal, France, Hungary, and the Netherlands during Q2 2022. Starlink was fastest for median download speed in Portugal at 123.01 Mbps, the Netherlands (122.43 Mbps), Austria (112.01 Mbps), France (110.98 Mbps), and Belgium (110.40 Mbps). Romania and Spain were the only countries to have fixed broadband beat Starlink for fastest median download speed, achieving 131.41 Mbps and 127.19 Mbps, respectively.

For upload, Starlink in Greece and Austria was the only satellite provider to achieve faster upload speeds than all fixed broadband providers combined at 19.34 Mbps to 5.14 Mbps, and to 17.14 Mbps to 15.90 Mbps, respectively. Fixed broadband providers in Spain (99.21 Mbps), Romania (94.23 Mbps), Sweden (92.77 Mbps), France (88.22 Mbps), Lithuania (83.54 Mbps), and Portugal (73.13 Mbps) all recorded median upload speeds greater than 70 Mbps, with the closest satellite provider being Starlink in Portugal at 28.52 Mbps.

All satellite providers fell far behind fixed broadband providers in the whole of Europe for latency during Q2 2022. Starlink in Spain and the United Kingdom recorded the lowest satellite latencies at 37 ms and 39 ms, respectively — still a far cry from the closest fixed broadband latency, which was 14 ms in Germany, Greece, and Italy.

Starlink in Brazil was the fastest satellite provider in South America

Our analysis of Speedtest Intelligence data found Starlink in Brazil was the fastest satellite provider in South America with a median download speed of 128.38 Mbps during Q2 2022, followed by Starlink in Chile at 94.79 Mbps. Chilean fixed broadband internet was still much faster for those who could get access to it. The Speedtest Global Index™ found Chile had the second fastest fixed broadband internet in the world with a median download speed of 211.43 Mbps during August 2022. Starlink in Brazil was the only satellite provider to be faster than its country’s fixed broadband providers combined.

Like last quarter, South American fixed broadband providers surpassed satellite providers in each respective upload speeds during Q2 2022. All satellite providers had a higher median latency than fixed broadband, though Starlink in Brazil and Chile had latencies of 38 ms.

Starlink in New Zealand was the fastest satellite provider in Oceania

Starlink’s fastest median download speed in Oceania was in New Zealand at 105.99 Mbps, though this still fell short of fixed broadband providers in the country. Starlink in Australia was faster than fixed broadband providers by a wide margin at 102.76 Mbps to 51.46 Mbps during Q2 2022. Starlink outperformed fixed broadband providers in new-to-our-list Tonga 45.25 Mbps to 22.32 Mbps.

New Zealand’s fixed broadband dominated for the fastest median upload speed in Oceania at 87.29 Mbps during Q2 2022, while Australia’s fixed broadband fell far behind with an upload speed of 17.86 Mbps. Both speeds were still faster than Starlink’s median upload speeds in New Zealand and Australia (12.31 Mbps and 10.45 Mbps, respectively). Tonga didn’t have a statistical winner for fastest upload speed, but Starlink reached 19.26 Mbps and fixed broadband 18.11 Mbps. Fixed broadband also had a lower median latency than Starlink during Q1 2022, which clocked in at 49 ms in Australia, 78 ms in New Zealand, and 98 ms in Tonga.

Biggest questions lie ahead, but competition will be good for consumers

Satellite connectivity is coming to mobile, with Starlink’s new partnership with T-Mobile and new mobile devices becoming satellite enabled. This will cause ripples across North America, which is a net positive for consumers who live in areas with low mobile and fixed broadband connectivity. Connecting with the world won’t be a question of how anymore, it will be a question of how good your experience is. That’s hopefully a win-win for consumers, especially as more providers vie for the fastest and best satellite experience — a true global space race.

Starlink isn’t stopping there — they’re trying to get into airplanes, cruise ships, and cars. But they’re not the only satellite provider making moves; Viasat is launching its Viasat-3 fleet, OneWeb is combining business with Eutelsat, and Amazon is sending 3,236 Project Kuiper satellites into orbit. We’ll be here monitoring the skies in our ongoing satellite series. Take a Speedtest® to help us provide an accurate and more complete picture of real-world performance. And if we’re missing data on your satellite network, send us a screenshot of your speed on Twitter or Facebook.

Starlink Speeds Dipped Slightly During Q3 2022 as the Space Race Heats up

Posted on November 30, 2022December 1, 2022 by Josh Fomon

Ookla® has exciting, fresh data from Q3 2022 for SpaceX’s Starlink, HughesNet, and Viasat in North and South America, as well as new Starlink markets we haven’t yet featured in our ongoing series on satellite internet. With accelerating competition on the horizon for 2023, we’ve been eager to see how Starlink continues to perform, especially as building new fiber connections continues to be costly around the world.

This analysis includes results from five additional countries, two new providers, and expanded data for Starlink, HughesNet, and Viasat. We also examine how Starlink’s internet performance has changed over the past year in Canada, Chile, and the United States.

Starlink performance dipped once again during Q3 2022 (though only slightly)

Perhaps a victim of their own success, Starlink download speeds dropped once again in Canada (at least 14%) and the U.S. (at least 17%) from Q2 to Q3 2022, while speeds remained roughly the same in Chile quarter over quarter. During the same period, fixed broadband performance raced ahead, improving at least 8% to 115.18 Mbps in Canada, at least 4% to 207.04 Mbps in Chile, and at least 8% to 164.13 Mbps in the U.S.

Over the past year, as we’ve seen more users flock to sign up for Starlink (reaching 400,000 users worldwide during Q2 2022), speeds have started to decrease. Without a doubt, Starlink often can be a life-changing service for consumers where connectivity is inadequate or nonexistent. Even as speeds slow, they still provide more than enough connectivity to do almost everything consumers normally need to do, including streaming 4K video and video messaging. The biggest thing you might have issues with is if you’re trying to play multiplayer online games — even being a low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite, latency still lags far behind low-latency fixed broadband connections.

Starlink upload speeds remained roughly unchanged in all three countries we surveyed during Q3 2022, improving marginally in Canada and Chile, and essentially staying the same in the U.S.

Starlink remains a boon for rural U.S. consumers who can afford it

Over the past year, Starlink has proliferated across the U.S., going from having at least 10 unique users in 776 U.S. counties, or roughly 25% of all counties during Q2-Q3 2021 to 2,399 counties in Q2-Q3 2022, or roughly 75% of counties. That marks about a 200% increase year over year, indicating consumer confidence in the provider.

Looking at only “nonmetro” counties as defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, 336 counties showed at least 10 Starlink users in Q2-Q3 2021. That was about 17% of all nonmetro counties. In Q2-Q3 2022, that rose to 1359 counties, or about 69% of nonmetro counties, marking about a 300% increase year over year.

Starlink in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands had the fastest satellite internet in North America

Speedtest Intelligence® reveals that Starlink in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands had the fastest median download speed among satellite providers in North America at 85.88 Mbps and 85.57 Mbps during Q3 2022. Starlink in the Dominican Republic (72.01 Mbps), Canada (65.80 Mbps), Mexico (64.30 Mbps), and the U.S. (53.00 Mbps) followed. Starlink had faster median download speeds than all fixed broadband providers combined in all of these countries except Canada and the U.S., and Viasat outperformed fixed broadband in the Dominican Republic (22.92 Mbps).

Viasat and HughesNet recorded their fastest median download speeds in Puerto Rico at 36.65 Mbps and 22.19 Mbps, respectively. Almost every satellite provider on our list reached speeds fast enough to stream high-quality video at around 20 Mbps, though latency still was much higher than fixed broadband internet.

For upload speeds, Starlink outperformed fixed broadband providers combined in the Dominican Republic (14.68 Mbps to 5.83 Mbps) and the U.S. Virgin Islands (12.59 Mbps to 8.37 Mbps). Fixed broadband providers in Canada had the fastest upload on our list at 29.29 Mbps.

Multi-server latency showed satellite internet’s limits, with the huge distances between satellite and receivers adding up to long lags — and every satellite provider with higher latencies than fixed broadband providers. However, the Dominican Republic and U.S. Virgin Islands still had higher fixed broadband multi-server latencies at 55.45 ms and 76.15 ms, respectively. Starlink in the U.S. had the lowest multi-server latency at 67.16 ms, followed by Canada (77.32 ms), and Mexico (96.42 ms), which were the only satellite options that had a multi-server latency under 100 ms.

Starlink in Brazil was the fastest satellite provider in South America

Brazilian satellite consumers weren’t lacking for fast internet options during Q3 2022, with Starlink blazing ahead among satellite providers in South America at 112.97 Mbps. Even Viasat notched a respectable median download speed of 45.15 Mbps. Starlink in Brazil was also the only satellite provider to outperform its country’s fixed broadband speeds, with ultrafast fixed broadband in Chile pulling ahead of Starlink 207.04 Mbps to 92.58 Mbps. Colombia was statistically too close to call in Q3 2022 with Starlink at 71.42 Mbps and fixed broadband at 83.76 Mbps. HughesNet trailed far behind with its fastest speed in Chile at 22.62 Mbps during Q3 2022.

For upload speeds, fixed broadband providers in every country we surveyed were faster than their satellite counterparts during Q3 2022. Starlink in Colombia had the fastest upload speed among satellite providers at 24.48 Mbps.

Speedtest Intelligence reveals multi-server latency told a similar story, with every country’s fixed broadband providers having a lower multi-server latency than their satellite counterparts. However, Starlink in Brazil and Chile had the lowest satellite multi-server latencies at 52.21 ms and 52.32 ms, respectively, during Q3 2022. Viasat and HughesNet lowest latencies were far behind with Viasat in Brazil at 670.63 ms and HughesNet in Chile at 713.04 ms.

New Q3 2022 Starlink countries have mixed results

Speedtest Intelligence data shows Starlink data in six new countries during Q3 2022, including Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Estonia, Moldova, Norway, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Starlink in Estonia (93.48 Mbps), the U.S. Virgin Islands (85.57 Mbps), and the Dominican Republic (72.01 Mbps) were much faster options than fixed broadband providers in their respective countries during Q3 2022. Starlink in Norway (113.86 Mbps) and Colombia (71.42 Mbps) were statistically in the same range as fixed broadband providers in their respective countries during the same time period. Starlink in Moldova (53.11 Mbps) was much slower than all fixed broadband providers combined (105.65 Mbps), though for rural folks with fewer options, still provides a speedy connection.

In all six countries, Starlink underperformed all fixed broadband providers combined for upload speed during Q3 2022, lagging behind from 12.59 Mbps to 24.48 Mbps, while median fixed broadband upload speeds ranged from 30.66 Mbps to 93.80 Mbps.

Multi-server latency was generally much higher than fixed broadband, with Starlink in Colombia showing the lowest multi-server latency at 58.65 ms, followed by Norway (73.00 ms), Estonia (85.37 ms), Moldova (105.26 ms), the Dominican Republic (110.62 ms), and the U.S. Virgin Islands (113.12 ms).

The great space race is on

There is no doubt a new space race for connectivity is being waged across the world. Competitors are pouring hundreds of millions and even billions into unlocking the celestial connectivity dilemma. Here are some major updates about what’s next for various different satellite competitors:

Viasat is launching new, faster arrays in the form of Viasat-3 arrays later this year.
HughesNet is set to launch new JUPITER 3 satellites next year.
Eutelsat’s proposed merger with OneWeb, which seems to be making progress forward, has the potential to disrupt satellite connectivity and give consumers more internet options across the globe.
Starlink is entering into the RV and private jet markets.
The European Commission is still looking into creating their own LEO network.
Amazon’s Project Kuiper is advancing and opening a new satellite factory, though its launch is delayed from Q4 2022 to early 2023.

With the competition for satellite connectivity heating up and Starlink facing potentially more competition in the coming months, we’ll be keeping our eyes to the sky to see how connectivity is performing. We’ll continue our series next quarter with Q3-Q4 2022 data from Europe and Oceania and any new countries where Starlink launches, and be back with North and South America data in Q2 2023. In the meantime, be sure to download the Speedtest app for Windows and Mac computers or for iOS or Android for devices and see how your satellite internet stacks up to our findings.

Inside Japan’s Unique Approach to 5G

Posted on March 30, 2020July 11, 2022 by Milan Milanović

日本語で読む

Japan has been a leader in mobile technology since its inception, and Japanese companies continue to occupy the cutting edge of mobile telephony. LTE networks in Japan have been able to deliver very competitive speeds in the densest urban areas, which speaks volumes about the cell density of the country’s networks. This article explores how Japanese mobile operators are applying this leading mindset to 5G.

How Japan utilizes spectrum

Japanese operators utilize a “layer cake” spectrum approach, which aggregates multiple frequency bands into data lanes that provide faster speeds. This approach utilizes low 700, 800 and 900 MHz bands, coupled with mid-band 1500 and 2100 MHz and topped off with the high-band 2500 MHz band. With this approach, users with modern devices are able to simultaneously access disparate spectrum bands, which enables better speeds and thus an improved user experience. Combined with Japan’s dense grid of existing cell sites, the spectrum layer cake should provide a good base for the overlay of sub-6 GHz spectrum that Japan has allocated for 5G services.

Timelines for launching 5G in Japan

For the past few years, Japan has been building toward the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo as an opportunity to showcase their next-generation wireless technology. Japan began conducting 5G trials as early as 2017. In 2018, Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIC) revised the spectrum allocation process to encourage new operators to enter the 5G market. Then in April 2019 the MIC approved 5G spectrum allocations to four applicants: KDDI (au), NTT DOCOMO, Rakuten Mobile and SoftBank.

KDDI, NTT DOCOMO and SoftBank launched 5G this month, with NTT DOCOMO and KDDI first to market on March 25. NTT DOCOMO’s initial 5G launch will leverage sub-6GHz spectrum assets, offering peak download speeds of up to 3.4 Gbps, and peak upload speeds of up to 182 Mbps. Later in June, the operator will start selling 5G devices capable of operating on the mmWave band and accessing 400 MHz of high-band spectrum. This will allow for peak download speeds of 4.1 Gbps and upload speeds of 480 Mbps. SoftBank will launch second on March 27. Rakuten plans to launch 5G by June 2020.

How Japanese operators will use spectrum for 5G

Japanese operators are deploying 5G networks in both FR1 (sub-6GHz) and FR2 (millimeter-wave) frequency bands. Each licensee has been awarded 400 MHz of FR2 spectrum and KDDI, NTT DOCOMO and SoftBank have been awarded 200 MHz of FR1 spectrum. The exception is Rakuten, which requested 100 MHz of FR1 spectrum.

Early trials and infrastructure

KDDI (au) 5G trials started in 2017 with Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung. KDDI awarded all three vendors with 5G contracts. KDDI also inked a seven-year roaming deal with Rakuten, the newest entrant in the wireless space, to provide LTE coverage to Rakuten’s subscribers when they roam outside of their coverage area.

NTT DOCOMO started early 5G trials using several infrastructure partners, including: Nokia and NEC Corp on 4.5 GHz spectrum band, Ericsson and Qualcomm on 4.5 GHz and the mmWave wave, and Huawei for mmWave. Fujitsu has proposed a software upgrade for existing LTE base stations which will enable 5G radio access. NEC Corp offered a small cells product supporting all three frequency bands (3.7 GHz, 4.5 GHz, 28 GHz) leveraging O-RAN (Open Radio Access Network Alliance), which aims to break the single-vendor-per-market lock and paves the way for a smooth transition to 5G software-defined networking and cloud services. NTT DOCOMO awarded NEC Corp, Fujitsu and Nokia with contracts, claiming the world’s first 4G/5G multi-vendor RAN (radio access network) interoperability.

SoftBank initially partnered with Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE in 2017 to conduct mmWave trials in the 28 GHz frequency band. SoftBank awarded the contracts to Nokia and Ericsson.

A completely new approach from Rakuten, the “optimistic” entrant

Rakuten is a premier Japanese ecommerce company founded in 1997. Rakuten means “optimism” in Japanese, and now the company offers products and services across a multitude of industries, including: banking, mobile payment, mobile messaging (via the Viber app), travel and their own MVNO, to name a few. The company understands the importance of controlling the entire user experience for their customers — and the value of running their own facilities-based mobile network in addition to OTT (over-the-top) services.

Since Rakuten is deploying a mobile network from the ground up using greenfield licensed spectrum assets, the company has decided to do something that nobody has ever done before: disaggregating the hardware from the software and running a fully virtualized, cloud-native network. This LTE network has been fully operational with over 3,000 cell sites in three markets (Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka) running limited trials since last year — and is expected to launch commercially on April 8. Because of its software-defined nature, the network can be upgraded to 5G, and the operator expects to have the upgrade pushed later this year.

Rakuten’s network architecture is unique, leveraging only antenna-integrated radios from traditional telecom vendors. Radios are fiber-fed via the fronthaul, and instead of processing at cell site cabinets, all the processing is happening remotely at centralized locations using off-the-shelf computer hardware running virtualized network functions. According to Rakuten CTO Tareq Amin, the process of activating a new cell site takes only eight and a half minutes instead of days. After Rakuten’s April launch, years worth of Rakuten’s research and development will be available to other operators globally via the Rakuten Mobile Platform (RMP), which could be very attractive to new entrants in the wireless space, such as DISH in the United States.

We will continue to monitor how these different 5G setups perform as 5G is rolled out in Japan and we look forward to providing future analysis on this topic.

日本国内における5Gへのユニークなアプローチ

日本は当初からモバイルテクノロジーのリーダーであり、日本企業は最先端のモバイルテレフォニーを占有し続けています。日本のLTEネットワークは、最も人口密度の高い都市地域でも非常に競争力のある速度を継続的に提供しています。これは、この国のネットワークの基地局密度の高さを物語っています。この記事では、日本の携帯電話事業者がこのような先進の考え方を5Gにどのように適用しているかを探ります。

日本のスペクトル活用法

日本の事業者は、複数の周波数帯域をデータレーンに集約して速度を高める「レイヤーケーキ」スペクトルアプローチを活用しています。このアプローチでは、700 MHz、800 MHz、900 MHzの低帯域と1500 MHz、2100 MHzの中帯域を組み合わせて、その上に2500 MHzの高帯域を乗せますこのアプローチにより、最新の電話機を所有するユーザーはさまざまなスペクトル帯域に同時にアクセスできます。これにより、高速化とそれに伴うユーザーエクスペリエンスの向上が実現します。このスペクトルレイヤーケーキと日本の既存の高密度基地局網との組み合わせは、日本が5Gサービスに割り当てた6 GHz以下のスペクトルのオーバーレイの良い基盤となります。

日本における5Gのローンチのタイムライン

日本は、2020年に東京で開催される夏季五輪を、次世代ワイヤレステクノロジーをアピールする機会ととらえ、ここ数年それに向けて準備を進めてきました。日本は、早くも2017年に5G実証実験を開始しました。2018年、日本の総務省は、新規事業者の5G市場への参入を促すため、スペクトル割り当て手続きを改訂しました。その後、2019年4月、MICは4つの申請企業への5Gスペクトル割り当てを承認しました。承認を受けたのは、KDDI（au）、NTTドコモ、楽天モバイル、ソフトバンクです。

KDDI、NTTドコモ、ソフトバンクは今月、5Gをローンチする予定です NTTドコモとKDDIが最初で、3月25日に発売された。NTTドコモの最初の5Gローンチでは、6GHz以下のスペクトルアセットを活用し、最大3.4 Gbpsのピークダウンロード速度と最大182 Mbpsのピークアップロード速度を提供します。7月後半、NTTドコモは、mmWave帯域で動作し、400 MHzの高帯域スペクトルにアクセスすることができる5Gデバイスの販売を開始する予定です。これにより、4.1 Gbpsのピークダウンロード速度と480 Mbpsのピークアップロード速度が可能になります。ソフトバンクが2番目で、3月27日にローンチする予定です。楽天は2020年6月までに5Gを発売する予定です。

日本の事業者による5G用スペクトラムの使用方法

日本の事業者は、FR1（6GHz以下）とFR2（ミリメートル波）の両方の周波数帯域で5Gネットワークを展開しています。各ライセンシーは400 MHzのFR2スペクトルを割り当てられ、KDDI、NTTドコモ、ソフトバンクは200 MHzのFR1スペクトルを割り当てられました。例外は楽天です。楽天は100 MHzのFR1スペクトルを申請しました。

早期実証実験とインフラストラクチャ

KDDI（au）は、2017年にEricsson、Nokia、Samsungと共同で5G実証実験を開始しました。KDDIは、3つのベンダーすべてと5G契約を結びました。KDDIはまた、ワイヤレス市場の最も新しい参入企業である楽天と7年間のローミング契約を結び、楽天の加入者が楽天のサービス区域外でKDDIのLTEサービスを利用できるようにしました。

NTTドコモは、複数のインフラストラクチャパートナーと共同で早期5G実証実験を開始しました（4.5 GHzスペクトル帯域でNokiaとNEC、4.5 GHzとmmWave波でEricssonとQualcomm、mmWaveでHuawei）。富士通は、既存のLTE基地局を対象に、5G無線アクセスを可能にするソフトウェアアップグレードを実施することを提案しました。NECは、O-RAN（Open Radio Access Network Alliance）を活用して3つの周波数帯域（3.7 GHz、4.5 GHz、28 GHz）をすべてサポートする小型基地局製品を提案しました。このソリューションは、「市場ごとに1つのベンダー」体制を打破することを目的とし、5Gソフトウェアデファインドネットワーキングおよびクラウドサービスに円滑に移行するための道筋をつけるものです。NTTドコモは、NEC、富士通、Nokiaと契約を結び、世界初の4G/5GマルチベンダーRAN（無線アクセスネットワーク）相互運用をアピールしています。

ソフトバンクは当初、2017年に中国のベンダーであるHuaweiおよびZTEと提携し、28 GHz周波数帯域でmmWaveの実証実験を実施しました。ソフトバンクは、NokiaおよびEricssonと契約を結びました。

「楽観的」な新規参入企業である楽天のまったく新しいアプローチ

楽天は1997年に設立された日本の最大手eコマース企業です。楽天は日本語で「楽観主義」を意味しており、同社は現在、銀行、モバイル決済、モバイルメッセージング（Viberを使用）、旅行、楽天独自のMVNOなど、多数の業界に製品とサービスを提供しています。同社は、顧客のユーザーエクスペリエンス全体をコントロールすることの重要性と、OTT（オーバーザトップ）サービスに加えて独自の設備ベースのモバイルネットワークを稼働させることの価値を理解しています。

楽天は、認可を受けた未開発のスペクトルアセットを活用してモバイルネットワークをゼロから展開しているため、これまで誰もやったことがないことに取り組むことを決めました。それはハードウェアをソフトウェアから切り離し、完全に仮想化されたクラウドネイティブのネットワークを稼働させるというものです。このLTEネットワークは、3つの市場（東京、名古屋、大阪）で3,000以上の基地局によって完全に機能しており、昨年以降、限定的な実証実験が実施されています。商業ローンチは4月8日の予定です。このネットワークは、ソフトウェアデファインドの特性を持っているため、5Gにアップグレード可能で、楽天は今年の後半にアップグレードを行う予定です。

楽天のネットワークアーキテクチャは独特で、従来の電気通信ベンダーのアンテナ統合型無線のみを使用しています。無線は、フロントホールからファイバで送信され、基地局のキャビネットで処理される代わりに、リモートの集中拠点で仮想ネットワーク機能を実行する市販コンピューターハードウェアによってまとめて処理されます。楽天のCTOであるTareq Amin氏によると、新しい基地局は数日ではなくわずか8分半で稼働させることができます。楽天の4月のローンチ後、他の事業者は楽天モバイルプラットフォーム（RMP）を介して楽天の3年分の研究開発の成果を利用できるようになります。これはワイヤレス市場への新規参入を目指す企業（米国のDISHなど）にとって非常に魅力的でしょう。

私たちは、今後日本で5Gが展開されるにつれてこれらの異なる5Gセットアップがどのように機能するかを引き続きモニタリングしていきます。このトピックについての将来の分析を皆様にご提供できる機会を楽しみにしています。

Starlink: Bridging the Digital Divide or Shooting for the Stars?

Posted on May 5, 2021July 11, 2022 by Isla McKetta

Elon Musk has a vision to use Starlink satellites to deliver world-class internet speeds to the rural households that have been left behind by so many infrastructure projects over the years. It’s a noble goal, and one that’s become increasingly necessary given our reliance on the internet over the past year. It could also help bridge the glaring gaps in performance between cities and rural communities which the Biden administration is prioritizing in the American Jobs Plan. Starlink is still in beta phase, but we decided to use data from Speedtest Intelligence® to investigate Q1 2021 performance in the U.S. and Canada to see if the program is living up to expectations.

Starlink speeds are sometimes a vast improvement, sometimes not

In the U.S. during Q1 2021, median download speeds from Starlink ranged from 40.36 Mbps in Columbia County, Oregon to 93.09 Mbps in Shasta County, California. These represented everything from a dramatic improvement over other fixed broadband providers (545.6% faster in Tehama County, California) to a disappointment (67.9% slower in Clay County, Missouri).

Starlink shows a narrower range of performance in Canada

Starlink’s Q1 2021 median download speeds in Canadian provinces showed a smaller range than in the U.S. with a low of 53.61 Mbps in Ontario and a high of 80.57 Mbps in Saskatchewan. Percentage difference when compared to all other fixed broadband providers also showed a narrower range. In Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Starlink customers reported median download speeds 59.6% and 38.5% faster than those for all other fixed broadband providers combined. In Québec, median download speeds were nearly equal, with Starlink performing only 3.4% slower. In B.C., Alberta, Ontario and New Brunswick, on the other hand, Starlink’s median download speeds were 20.9%, 24.2%, 29.5% and 40.7% slower than other fixed broadband providers, respectively.

Starlink latency is up to 486% higher in U.S., 369% in Canada

A reasonable latency is critical to effective internet use. If your latency is too high, you might be the one on the video call with the tinny voice who’s answering questions when the conversation’s already moved on. If you’re a gamer, you already know that latency can cause your characters to stutter-step around at critical moments. Starlink plans to use low-Earth orbit satellites with laser links to radically decrease latency in rural areas. What we’re seeing so far, though, is that Starlink’s latency is higher than the alternatives, often much higher.

Starlink’s latency was higher in all but one of the U.S. counties surveyed during Q1 2021. The exception was Mariposa County, California where Starlink’s latency was 17.4% lower than that of all other providers combined. Median latency values on Starlink were observed from 31 ms (Kittitas County, Washington) all the way up to 88 ms (Otsego County, Michigan). For comparison, median latency values for all other providers combined ranged from 8 ms (Fairfax County, Virginia) to 47 ms (Daviess County, Kentucky).

In Canada, Starlink’s latency was higher in all provinces surveyed during Q1 2021. With median latency values from 34 ms (B.C.) to 61 ms (Saskatchewan), Starlink’s latency was 209.1% to 369.2% higher than that of all other providers combined.

Starlink meets minimum tier for FCC’s Rural Development Opportunity Fund

In order to compete for the FCC’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF), providers must meet the minimum performance tier (25 Mbps download / 3 Mbps upload / 100 ms latency). We analyzed Speedtest® results for users with more than two tests during Q1 2021 to see whether Starlink could potentially qualify for this funding.

In both the U.S. and Canada, Starlink provided competitive or better service at the minimum (25/3/100) tier. In the U.S., 86.7% of Starlink users met this threshold, compared with 83.2% of those on all other fixed broadband providers. Although the FCC’s criteria don’t apply north of the border, 85.6% of Canadian Starlink users met the Minimum threshold, compared with 77.8% for all other providers. Starlink showed a smaller proportion of users meeting the baseline and above baseline tiers than all other providers combined.

Given this data, it’s safe to say Starlink could be a cost-effective solution that dramatically improves rural broadband access without having to lay thousands of miles of fiber.

Musk’s Starlink experiment is certainly fascinating and we applaud any effort to get better service for rural residents. That said, it’s clearly early days for the rapidly growing Starlink, and results from Q1 may not be indicative of future performance. We’ll be watching to see how performance improves as more satellites are launched and as more users join the service. If you’re on Starlink, take a Speedtest to share how your connection is performing.

Editor’s note: this article was updated on May 17 with a sentence clarifying how this data should be interpreted.

How Starlink’s Satellite Internet Stacks Up Against HughesNet and Viasat around the Globe

Posted on August 4, 2021July 11, 2022 by Isla McKetta

The satellite internet race is heating up, with more competitors serving more areas than even a quarter ago. We’re back with a broader look at internet network performance for satellite providers across the globe based on Q2 2021 data from Speedtest Intelligence^™.

Starlink speeds beat competitors in the U.S., can’t top fixed broadband

Given that satellite internet is often the only solution for folks with little to no fixed broadband access, the Speedtest® results we saw coming from HughesNet, Starlink and Viasat during Q2 2021 were encouraging. However, Starlink was the only satellite internet provider in the United States with fixed-broadband-like latency figures, and median download speeds fast enough to handle most of the needs of modern online life at 97.23 Mbps during Q2 2021 (up from 65.72 Mbps in Q1 2021). HughesNet was a distant second at 19.73 Mbps (15.07 Mbps in Q1 2021) and Viasat third at 18.13 Mbps (17.67 Mbps in Q1 2021). None of these are as fast as the 115.22 Mbps median download speed for all fixed broadband providers in the U.S. during Q2 2021, but it beats digging twenty miles (or more) of trench to hook up to local infrastructure.

Starlink’s median upload speed of 13.89 Mbps (up from 13.77 Mbps in Q1 2021) was much closer to that on fixed broadband (17.18 Mbps in Q2 2021, 15.99 Mbps in Q1 2021). Viasat had the second fastest upload speed among satellite providers at 3.38 Mbps (3.48 in Q1 2021). HughesNet was third (2.43 Mbps in Q1 and Q2 2021).

Critically, Starlink was the only satellite internet provider with a median latency that was anywhere near that seen on fixed broadband in Q2 2021 (45 ms and 14 ms, respectively). A low latency connection is more responsive, making it essential for many common applications such as voice and video calling, gaming and live streaming of content. Starlink is able to achieve these lower latency numbers through the use of their low earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation. At altitudes between 550-1200 km, these satellites are physically closer to the earth’s surface than traditional satellite providers. Therefore it takes less time for the signal to relay back to a downlink station on earth, ensuring a much more responsive connectivity experience for the user. Viasat and HughesNet both utilize considerably higher “geosynchronous” orbits of around 35,000km for their satellites. This allows them to serve much wider swaths of the Earth’s surface with fewer satellites, but with a dramatic increase in latency in our data of 630 ms and 724 ms respectively.

Satellite internet speeds in the U.S. are increasing, mostly

Consumers are used to incremental increases in fixed broadband performance as that’s a developed technology with a stable market share. Satellite internet is newer and speeds fluctuate as technologies improve and as more users are added to sometimes crowded networks. Data from Speedtest Intelligence during Q1-Q2 2021 shows some of these struggles as median download speeds for both Starlink and HughesNet dipped in February and then rose again through the period only to dip again in June. This could be related to seasonal weather patterns. Viasat’s median download speed rose slightly from January through April and then started to decline slightly in May and June. We’ll continue watching the performance of these companies over time to see if they reach the steady climb that fixed broadband enjoys.

Starlink performance varies at the county level, but not widely

We saw sufficient samples during Q2 2021 to analyze Starlink performance in 458 counties in the U.S. While there was about a 100 Mbps range in performance between the county with the fastest median download speed (Morgan County, Alabama at 168.30 Mbps) and the county with the slowest median download speed (Madison County, Indiana at 64.51 Mbps), even the lower-end speeds are well above the FCC’s Baseline performance tier of at least a 25 Mbps download speed. We also saw many more counties qualify for analysis during Q2 2021 than we saw in Q1 2021.

Satellite internet performance elsewhere in the world

The ambition and potential of satellite internet providers is of course to increase internet access across the globe. To that end, we examined satellite internet performance in countries with an established market share.

Brazil: Viasat download speed is comparable to fixed broadband, upload is not

Viasat’s 60.30 Mbps median download speed during Q2 2021 in Brazil was very close to the national average for fixed broadband of 61.38 Mbps. Viasat’s median upload speed (1.05 Mbps) was much slower, however, than that on fixed broadband (28.75 Mbps), and Viasat’s latency was much higher (613 ms vs 7 ms).

Canada: Starlink beats fixed broadband download speeds

Our previous article showed that Starlink’s median download speed was slower than fixed broadband in three provinces and faster in two. Data from Q2 2021 shows that Starlink’s median download speed exceeded that of fixed broadband in Canada (86.92 Mbps vs. 84.24 Mbps), making Starlink a reasonable alternative to fixed broadband in Canada. Starlink’s median upload speed was slower than fixed broadband (13.63 Mbps vs. 17.76 Mbps). Latency on Starlink was much higher (55 ms vs. 12 ms), but many customers in remote areas would gladly accept a latency in that range in exchange for having access to internet service.

Starlink performance varies at the province level, but not widely

Starlink showed enough samples to analyze performance in 8 provinces in Canada during Q2 2021. Starlink’s Q2 2021 median download speed was faster than fixed broadband in five provinces (Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec and Saskatchewan), though samples in Nova Scotia were few enough and showed enough variability that there is room for interpretation. Download speeds were comparable between Starlink and overall fixed broadband in two provinces (Alberta and Ontario) and fixed broadband was faster in British Columbia.

Chile: HughesNet shows comparable speeds here and in the U.S.

At 15.43 Mbps, the median download speed for HughesNet in Chile during Q2 2021 was not fast, especially compared with the country’s fixed broadband average of 111.94 Mbps. Median upload speeds also showed a wide gap (3.23 Mbps for HughesNet to 39.48 Mbps on fixed broadband), and HughesNet’s latency was very high (678 ms vs. 8 ms).

Colombia: HughesNet is slowest

The slowest performance we saw for HughesNet was in Colombia, where fixed broadband speeds are also slower than in other countries surveyed. HughesNet showed a median download speed of 9.28 Mbps during Q2 2021, compared with Colombia’s 35.90 Mbps for fixed broadband overall. Median upload speed was also slower using the satellite internet provider (3.03 Mbps) than fixed broadband (8.56 Mbps), and latency was much higher on satellite (799 ms vs. 17 ms).

France: Where the fastest Starlink download speeds are

Satellite internet users in France saw the fastest median download speeds from Starlink of all countries we surveyed during Q2 2021. At 139.39 Mbps, Starlink’s download speed easily beat the country-wide average for fixed broadband of 70.81 Mbps. Starlink’s upload speed was slower than the fixed broadband average, but still respectable (29.35 Mbps vs. 52.56 Mbps), and Starlink’s latency was higher (53 ms vs. 13 ms).

Germany: Starlink far surpasses local fixed broadband

Consumers looking for fast internet in Germany have a great option in Starlink. Starlink’s median download and upload speeds were much faster than the country averages for fixed broadband in Q2 2021. The only drawback is Starlink’s 37 ms latency, compared to the 15 ms average for fixed broadband.

Mexico: Viasat and HughesNet are comparable, though slower than fixed broadband

Mexico has options when it comes to satellite internet, and the faster of the two options appears to be Viasat, for now. With a median download speed of 13.95 Mbps in Mexico during Q2 2021, Viasat was faster than HughesNet (11.92 Mbps) but slower than the country’s average for fixed broadband (29.99 Mbps). Median upload speed told a similar story, though HughesNet was slightly faster than Viasat (3.25 Mbps vs. 2.01 Mbps). While Viasat’s latency was high (672 ms vs 13 ms for fixed broadband), it was lower than HughesNet’s (714 ms).

New Zealand: Starlink is faster than fixed broadband

Data from Speedtest Intelligence shows that Starlink’s median download speed was much faster than New Zealand’s average fixed broadband download speed during Q2 2021 (127.02 Mbps vs. 78.85 Mbps), and the upload speeds were nearly identical (23.61 Mbps vs. 23.51 Mbps). Starlink did have a much higher latency (101 ms vs. 7 ms). Starlink is relatively new in the country and does not have a large market share yet; we’ll be interested to see how their speeds hold up under heavier use.

United Kingdom: Starlink beats fixed broadband providers

Starlink showed a much faster median download speed in the U.K. during Q2 2021 (108.30 Mbps) than the country’s average for fixed broadband (50.14 Mbps). Starlink’s upload speed was also slightly faster (15.64 Mbps vs. 14.76 Mbps), and the latency was pretty good, given the distance traveled (37 ms vs. 15 ms). This brings Starlink closer to contender status for consumers across the U.K., not just those stranded in internet-free zones in Northern Scotland, once the service interruptions are under control. It also shows that because satellite internet is not constrained by the infrastructure of a given country, there is the potential to radically outperform fixed broadband.

This data is changing rapidly as satellite internet providers launch new service locations and improve their technology. We’ll be excited to see if Starlink is still the satellite provider to beat next quarter and in what other countries satellite internet provides a viable alternative to fixed broadband.

Key messages

Wi-Fi performance continues to lag ethernet within the home

Older generations of Wi-Fi 4 and Wi-Fi 5 remain dominant globally

Asian and North American ISPs lead the charge to Wi-Fi 6 and beyond

Wi-Fi 7 on the horizon as router vendors continue to push the envelope on performance

Smartphone support indicates ISPs should focus on Wi-Fi 6E for now

The outlook for Wi-Fi in the home

Starlink users in metro and nonmetro areas love Starlink, fixed broadband users dislike their internet service providers

Starlink speeds increased in Canada and the U.S. over the past two quarters, but are mixed year-over-year

Starlink in Canada blazed ahead as the fastest satellite provider in mainland North America

Starlink in Chile raced ahead as the fastest satellite provider in South America

Starlink in Jamaica was the fastest Caribbean satellite provider

New Q1 2023 Starlink countries show promising initial results

The 2023 space revolution is off to a huge start

Amazon’s Project Kuiper showcases low-cost customer satellite terminals

Viasat launched its Viasat-3 arrays

Eutelsat, OneWeb, and Intelsat are making big moves

European Union greenlights multi-orbit constellation

HughesNet aiming to launch Jupiter 3 array in Q2 2023

Ookla will continue monitoring new satellite internet developments

Starlink is mostly speeding up again from Q3 to Q4 2022, but is still slower than a year ago

Starlink in Denmark and Switzerland had the fastest satellite internet in Europe during Q4 2022

Starlink in New Zealand was the fastest satellite provider in Oceania

New Q4 2022 Starlink countries show very promising results

Consumers and enterprises stand to benefit from satellite developments in 2023

Amazon’s Project Kuiper approved by the FCC

Viasat set to launch Viasat-3 arrays around April 8, 2023

Eutelsat’s merger with OneWeb approved by Eutelsat board, second-gen array being planned

European Commission forges ahead on Constellation Iris

HughesNet aiming to launch Jupiter 3 array in H1 2023

Ookla will continue monitoring new satellite internet developments

Why latency matters

Latency will matter even more in the very near future

How Ookla measures latency

Unloaded latency

Multi-server latency

Loaded latency

Global latency today

Key messages

Blurring the lines between fixed and mobile networks

Fixed-mobile bundling — initially focused on cost savings for consumers

U.S. fixed-mobile service overlap — battle lines drawn

Overlap in fixed and wireless subscriptions (Q3 2022 | Speedtest® Data)

Beyond fixed-mobile bundling — driving experiential improvements to network service

Starlink speeds decreased in every country we surveyed over the past year as more users sign up for service

Starlink in Puerto Rico was the fastest satellite provider in North America

Starlink outperformed fixed broadband average in 16 European countries

Starlink in Brazil was the fastest satellite provider in South America

Starlink in New Zealand was the fastest satellite provider in Oceania

Biggest questions lie ahead, but competition will be good for consumers

Starlink performance dipped once again during Q3 2022 (though only slightly)

Starlink remains a boon for rural U.S. consumers who can afford it

Starlink in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands had the fastest satellite internet in North America

Starlink in Brazil was the fastest satellite provider in South America

New Q3 2022 Starlink countries have mixed results

The great space race is on

How Japan utilizes spectrum

Timelines for launching 5G in Japan

How Japanese operators will use spectrum for 5G

Early trials and infrastructure

A completely new approach from Rakuten, the “optimistic” entrant

日本のスペクトル活用法

日本における5Gのローンチのタイムライン

日本の事業者による5G用スペクトラムの使用方法

早期実証実験とインフラストラクチャ

「楽観的」な新規参入企業である楽天のまったく新しいアプローチ

Starlink speeds are sometimes a vast improvement, sometimes not

Starlink shows a narrower range of performance in Canada

Starlink latency is up to 486% higher in U.S., 369% in Canada

Starlink meets minimum tier for FCC’s Rural Development Opportunity Fund

Starlink speeds beat competitors in the U.S., can’t top fixed broadband

Satellite internet speeds in the U.S. are increasing, mostly

Starlink performance varies at the county level, but not widely

Satellite internet performance elsewhere in the world

Brazil: Viasat download speed is comparable to fixed broadband, upload is not

Canada: Starlink beats fixed broadband download speeds

Starlink performance varies at the province level, but not widely

Chile: HughesNet shows comparable speeds here and in the U.S.

Colombia: HughesNet is slowest

France: Where the fastest Starlink download speeds are

Overlap in fixed and wireless subscriptions (Q3 2022 | Speedtest^® Data)