nbn broadband speeds improving for most

The Australian telecoms industry is making progress improving nbn speeds for customers, but some users are still receiving significantly lower speeds than promised by their plan, according to the ACCC’s third Measuring Broadband Australia report.

The report found that 69% of the ACCC’s broadband speed tests conducted in August recorded download speeds of more than 90% of a subscriber’s maximum plan speeds.

But 7% of households recorded speeds of less than 50% of the maximum plan speeds, with the divide slightly higher in regional areas. Urban services delivered in towns with over 10,000 people received on average 84.8% of their maximum plan speeds, compared to 83% in regional areas.

Average speeds during busy hours reduced by just one percentage point compared to the overall average, and this was true for all speed tier plans.

These statistics are largely in line with the results from the second report, based on speed tests conducted in May.

The report also found that TPG delivered the fastest average download speed during the quarter with 88.7% of tests achieving speeds of at least 90% of maximum plan speeds.

TPG took the mantle from Aussie Broadband, which fell to second place with 87%, followed by iiNet (85.9%), Optus (84.9%), Telstra (83.9%) and MyRepublic (83.5%).

“We are pleased that the Measuring Broadband Australia program is being taken very seriously by internet service providers and is delivering noticeable improvements to customers’ broadband speeds,” ACCC Chair Rod Sims said.

“We encourage customers who aren’t getting the speeds they expected to contact their internet service provider to see if they need to change plans. We will continue to closely monitor the progress of industry in remedying this issue.”

Telecoms industry body the Communications Alliance said its own analysis of the statistics shows that nbn service providers are now on average delivering more than the typical busy-hour speeds promised in their advertising.

“The service providers achieved an average of 102.28% of their advertised speeds, excluding the one provider that does not advertise typical busy-hour speeds,” the body’s CEO John Stanton said.

“This is an excellent result — up from 99.9% in the previous quarter — and shows that customers are receiving the service performance that has been promised and they have purchased.”

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