According to a new Communications Alliance report, Australian internet service providers are now delivering, on average, 102 percent of the speeds they advertise.
The report shows an improvement from the previous quarter, when delivered speeds averaged 99 percent of advertised rates.
Consistently meeting or exceeding advertised speeds tends to build greater customer satisfaction and loyalty than failing to meet expectations.
Communications Alliance CEO John Stanton commented on the findings:
“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).
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.”
In contrast, providers in some markets have historically advertised “up to” speeds that customers rarely experience in real-world conditions, which generated widespread complaints and regulatory scrutiny.
For example, a regulatory change in the United Kingdom requires ISPs to advertise speeds that represent the average available to at least 50 percent of users during peak hours rather than maximum theoretical speeds.
Mr Stanton also criticized the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for focusing its reporting on maximum plan speeds rather than on advertised or typical busy-hour speeds:
“This is unfortunate, given that the ACCC has issued guidance – and providers have entered enforceable undertakings in accordance with it – that providers should not make claims around maximum plan speeds, and instead should advertise based on information about ‘typical busy hour speeds.’”
The Communications Alliance report also measured performance against maximum plan speeds during peak hours, finding that the six providers included achieved between 82.1% and 88.4% of those maximum figures.
Overall, the data indicate that Australian ISPs are increasingly accurate in their advertising and are delivering service performance that aligns with, or slightly exceeds, what customers expect. As regulatory frameworks evolve to emphasize realistic, customer-focused advertising, transparency around typical busy-hour speeds helps consumers make better-informed choices and encourages providers to maintain reliable networks.
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