An update of actual Internet upload speeds in 27 Caribbean countries and a comparison of results recorded in September 2014.
Following from our recent examination of actual household download speeds from across the Caribbean, we now present and discuss actual household upload speeds that are being experienced in the region.
Methodology
The methodology used for this assessment is the same as that used to collect data on download speeds, which was outlined in Snapshot: update of actual Internet download speeds from across the Caribbean, March 2015.
The results presented in the next section were recorded on 17 March 2015 for the countries listed in Table 1. Globally, results were available for 198 countries.
Table 1: List of countries examined for household download speeds as of 17 March 2015 (ICT Pulse)
Caribbean Internet upload speeds performance
Internet upload speeds continue to vary across the 27 Caribbean countries examined, as shown in Figure 1. The fastest upload speed was recorded in Curacao, which was ranked 54th out of the 198 countries assessed, at 15.94 Mbps, and was followed by the Bahamas at 14.04 Mbps and 64th on the list, and Aruba at 12.47 Mbps, and 72nd on the list. On the other hand, the slowest upload speeds were recorded in Cuba, 1.65 Mbps, which was 185th globally. Thereafter, Guyana, at 2.30 Mbps was ranked 181st, and Belize, at 2.64 Mbps, and was 174th out of 198 countries. The average upload speed across the Caribbean countries examined was 7.72 Mbps.
Figure 1:
Mean household Internet upload speeds in select Caribbean countries as of 17 March 2015 (Source: Ookla)
Worldwide, the fastest household Internet upload speeds were recorded in Hong Kong (95.55 Mbps); Singapore (91.75 Mbps); and South Korea (73.22 Mbps), and the global average was 10.10 Mbps. For other international country groupings, average upload speed were as follows:
- APEC: 12.10 Mbps
- EU: 9.60 Mbps
- G8: 12.00 Mbps
- OECD: 8930 Mbps.
What changes have occurred since September 2014?
Similar to our recent review of household download speeds, household upload speeds have changed drastically since our last assessment in September 2014. Overall and across the Caribbean, there has been a net increase in upload speeds in all of the countries examined, as reflected in Figure 2. In other words, in no country was the upload speed recorded in September 2014 faster than that recorded earlier this week. Consequently, the regional average increased by +4.90 Mbps, from +2.82 Mbps last September.
Figure 2: Changes in mean upload speeds in select Caribbean countries between September 2014 and March 2015 (Source: Ookla)
The greatest increases in uploads speeds were recorded in Curacao, by +10.80 Mbps, and followed by Aruba, which recorded a +9.89 Mbps increase, and Puerto Rico and Trinidad and Tobago, which were a tie at 9.67 Mbps. That the other end of the spectrum, the three countries with the smallest change in upload speeds over the past six months were: Haiti, at +0.21 Mbps; followed by Guyana and Cuba, where the average upload speed changed by only +0.54 and +0.94, respectively.
Household upload speeds also increased globally, by +1 Mbps, which was also reflected in other country groupings:
- APEC: +1.60 Mbps
- EU: +0.50 Mbps
- G8: +1.40 Mbps
- OECD: +1.00 Mbps.
With regard to changes in global rankings, although all Caribbean countries examined recorded improvements in their upload speeds, almost a third of them (which are highlighted in red) slipped from their September 2014 positions, as shown in Table 2. Further, the countries that were earlier highlighted as realising the greatest change in upload speeds (be it improvement or deterioration) over the period under review were not necessarily the ones that experienced commensurate changes in their position when ranked globally.
The most significant slips were recorded in Haiti, which dropped 55 spots, followed by Saint Kitts and Nevis and Antigua and Barbuda, which dropped -25 and -24 spots, respectively, in the past six months. Conversely, the greatest improvements in ranking were in Grenada, which rose 80 spots from 165 in September 2014; Saint Lucia, which rose 65 spots and Aruba, which rose 59 spots.
Table 2: Change in mean household upload speed ranking between September 2014 and March 2015 in select Caribbean countries (Source: Ookla)
_____________
