Philippines ranks 110^th in internet speed

THE PHILIPPINES ranked 110^th out of 139 countries in mobile internet speeds in November, according to the Speedtest Global Index run by American internet testing and analysis firm Ookla.

The country’s ranking inched up one spot with average mobile connectivity download speeds of 18.49 megabits per second (Mbps). In contrast, the top ranked United Arab Emirates saw 170.30 Mbps on average.

Southeast Asian neighbor Singapore ranked 16th, followed by Thailand (44^th), Vietnam (63^rd), Malaysia (88^th), and Cambodia (102^nd).

The Philippines also went up four spots to rank 103^rd out of 176 countries for fixed broadband download speeds, with 28.69 Mbps compared with top-ranked Singapore’s 241.10 Mbps.

Thailand ranked third, while Malaysia came in 43^rd followed by Vietnam at 49^th. Cambodia came in 113^th with 25.31 Mbps.

While lockdowns had affected internet speeds due to surging traffic, Ookla by July said that global internet speeds had mostly stabilized to pre-pandemic levels.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte in July threatened to shut down telecommunications companies Globe Telecom, Inc. and Smart Communications, Inc. if they fail to improve services by the end of the year.

National Telecommunications Commissioner Gamaliel A. Cordoba earlier this month said that telecommunications companies had improved services since then, noting that the average fixed download speed in the country was at 25.07 Mbps and mobile download speed was at 16.95 Mbps in July.

He said that internet connectivity demand increased by 500% during the stricter lockdown in March and April. — Jenina P. Ibañez