TrueNet Drives Improved ISP Performance

[Full release with charts: ISPs Respond to TrueNet Monitoring | TrueNet - The broadband monitors]

ISPs Respond to TrueNet Monitoring

2013-01-07

TrueNet Drives Improved ISP Performance

With over a year's worth of consistent data, published every month, TrueNet has tracked the performance of participating ISPs across New Zealand. Focussing attention on these numbers has had a positive effect for a number of ISPs, notably Snap and Orcon who have both improved their webpage download performance since TrueNet first reported.

Snap and Orcon are now our best speed performers, Orcon coming from almost last when TrueNet reported this measure for the first time in March 2012. To stay at the top of this test requires regular and timely upgrades of capacity.

TrueNet welcomes the competitive spirit that became evident during 2012 and has resulted in most ISPs achieving improved performance. For 2013, TrueNet plans additional reports to ensure that ISPs consider factors other than Speed and Webpage downloads in their performance metrics.

Speed

Capped DSL Speed

Speed by Time of Day compares the performance of each ISP during the peak usage periods of the day.

November 2012 had this month's top ISPs, Orcon and Snap, with minimum speeds better than 95% of their top speed by Time of Day (TOD). In December these two improved further (Orcon 98% and Snap 97%), and were joined by Telecom (97%) and Xnet(96%). Xnet were up from 90% in November.

Vodafone also improved from just 80% to an almost respectable 88%, a small amount below their new aquisition TelstraClear (DSL).

Performance for capped DSL by most ISPs has improved significantly over 2012. TrueNet's first published speed comparison, where ISPs were named, was for March 2012. Orcon had a speed at peak time of 89% of off-peak speeds, and TelstraClear was much futher behind at 76%. Orcon improved by December up 9% to 98%, while TelstraClear have improved 13% to 89%.

Time to Download a Webpage

Four ISPs are now top of TrueNet's Webpage Download performance chart, TelstraClear, Maxnet, Slingshot, and Vodafone.

Maxnet matched the performance of the top 5 and TelsraClear DSL regained their earlier position in the top 5. Slingshot had a large improvement, especially with their Unlimited product.

Webpage downloads is another area where, in response to TrueNet data, ISPs have significantly improved their performance. Earlier download test results for December 2011 had a larger scale to allow for webpage download averages of almost 2.5 seconds for Xnet (WorldXchange) and Vodafone. We expect to lower the scale further next month to 1.5 seconds as most ISPs now achieve better than that.

* The Voyager increase is a statistical issue with medians, with only five probes, there is a high chance that the sample can produce a highly volatile result - two probes have a time of ~0.5s, while three have a time of ~1.5, last month the order was the opposite.

Unlimited DSL Speed

Slingshot remains the only Unlimited service we are able to measure, and their performance is being maintained at the same level as previous months.

If you are with Orcon and have their unlimited service, please consider volunteering to assist this report. see here

Glossary

Details on how we measure are avalable on our Technical page. We continue to seek more volunteers, please drop in here to participate.

Speed - Throughput or the peak speed achieved during our standard test downloading an image from our test servers

Webpage Download - TrueNet maintains a Standard Testpage which is used for measuring the time to download the entire page. This page is visible here, we use a copy located on our test servers for test downloads.

ISPs - TrueNet has probes measuring almost 20 ISPs but only reports on those where there are 5 or more probes working during any particular month.

ADSL, VDSL, DSL - the standard broadband service provided over a telephone line, VDSL is a faster version than ADSL. They use similar technology and backhaul, so sometimes DSL is used when referring to both.

Unlimited - A service where there is no monthly limit on the amount of data used. Specifications for this service include that it may be "Managed" and have "performance reductions applied during peak demand periods".

DSLAM - the exchange or cabinet based equipment that your modem is connected to, over the pair of copper wires that are exclusively allocated to your premises.

Ethernet - The wiring used to connect computers to a network, typically an Ethernet cable is coloured blue, with small square connectors at each end.

ENDS

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