Asian countries top the “Peak Internet Connection” survey
In the UK we know that ISP selection can make a big difference to connection speed, with high-speed broadband services such as 100MB BT Infinity and Virgin Media having quite limited availability, but how do we really shape up against the rest of the world?
There are constant surveys and data is continuously being monitored and graphed to see where various countries measure up in the grand scheme of things. Everyone knows that Asia are leading the way, and the latest information released by Akamai shows that the top 3 spaces are occupied by countries in this area. Surprisingly, South Korea aren’t in the top spot anymore. They held on to that position for a good year or so, however there’s a new kid on the block in the form of Hong Kong with a blistering average speed of 49.2Mbps. They’ve greatly benefited from being such a small state with a high density population, meaning that the infrastructure is easier to set up and there are plenty of people nearby to take up the ISPs cheap offerings. Whilst things did seem to be on the up in the previous quarter, there are signs that growth is slowing and also warnings that prices are more likely to go up in the near future, than they are to go down.
This isn’t a small increase for Hong Kong though, it represents a 7.1% rise in the last quarter and a huge 25% rise from last year. Other countries are also on the up, with Finland, Latvia, Switzerland, Ireland and Japan all having their figures increased by up to a massive 30% than the last quarter! Spare a thought for Libya though, who even after having a 75% gain on the last quarter, are still only hitting 0.5Mbps.
Still, with all of the investment in the United Kingdom at the moment from British Telecom (BT) and the existing infrastructure from Virgin Media, we should expect to creep up the table in the next year or so when more and more people pick up the high speed FTTC and FTTP (Fibre to the Cabinet/Premises) packages being pushed at the moment. It’s long overdue and the progress being made is promising. At the moment we stand 21st in the world rankings with an average peak speed of 17.89Mbps which can only go up with the continued uptake of the new fibre products available!
Continuing advancements in the infrastructures worldwide mean that things will only get bigger and better and with demand for High Definition content growing ever larger, it’s a good job too!