The German Federal Network Agency has published its first detailed research on broadband speeds, showing many customers do not receive the maximum speeds mentioned in their contracts. The Bundesnetzagentuur noted that the quality varies depending on the type of connection. Half of all fixed broadband users reached at least 60 percent of the advertised maximum speed, but this rises to over 90 percent at some providers.
Depending on the bandwidth class, only 4 to 25 percent of users reached 100 percent of the maximum promised speed. The lowest share was in the speed class 8-18 Mbps, which mainly concerns ADSL users. Across the different ISPs, they delivered the advertised speeds to anywhere form just 1 percent to 35 percent of their customers. Speeds also varied considerably depending on the time of day. Notably the class 200-500 Mbps, which covers cable operators, saw a sharp fall-off in speeds in the evenings, when cable networks are also taken up with TV viewing or other online activities.
The regulator also looked at customer satisfaction and found that about 65 percent of consumers consider their providers 'good', 'very good' or 'satisfactory'. Satisfied users tended to achieve a better speed compared to their contracted rate.
The survey also looked at mobile broadband connections, which realised even less of the promised speeds. Less than 30 percent of mobile users achieved even half the advertised the speed, compared to just over 70 percent of fixed broadband customers. Nevertheless, 82.8 percent of mobile broadband users still gave their provider at least a satisfactory rating, suggesting they are more concerned about other elements of the service than the top speed.
The research was conducted from September 2015 to September 2016 and measured over 106,000 fixed connections and more than 53,000 mobile connections.
