Broadband Speeds: The More You Pay Your ISP, The More Likely They Tell The Truth

In August 2011, the FCC released Measuring Broadband America, a comprehensive “performance study of residential wireline broadband service in the United States…” A recent independent analysis of the report, though, revealed something that the FCC did not conclude: that actual connection speeds are more likely to match advertised speeds when the consumer purchases a high-bandwidth package.

The engineering consulting firm NetForecast, in its further analysis of the FCC's own data, found:

“The higher the bandwidth purchased, the better the chance that the bandwidth delivered meets or exceeds advertised levels. At lower service tiers, consumers generally receive less bandwidth capacity than advertised, while at higher tiers consumers tend to receive more than the advertised bandwidth capacity, except during peak usage periods.”

Speed Matters believes that all people deserve high-speed broadband at a reasonable price, and that consumers are entitled to the speeds that they pay for.

Measuring Broadband America (FCC report, 2011)

NetForecast (website)

Do Broadband Consumers Get the Bandwidth They Pay For? (Networkworld, Nov. 28, 2011)