Broadband Speed, the Internet and Web Hosting

Speed Matters When It Comes to Website Downloads and Web Hosting

We can send men and women into outer space at the drop of a hat and create multi-billion dollar technical solutions with apparent ease. Indeed we are light years ahead of the rest of the world in so many ways. So why is it that user speeds for broadband services in the Unites States are far below the speeds in other developed countries?

An article published in the June 27 issue of USA Today analyzed the results of a recent survey commissioned by the Communication Workers of America. According to the article, the median US download speed is 1.97 megabits per second. Japan, averages download speeds of 61 megabits per second. Download speed times in France are nine times as fast as in the US and in South Korea the median speed is 32 times as fast as in the US. Consumers in many other countries can download a full length movie in a matter of minutes.

Superior Web Hosting Speed

Fortunately, services offered by web hosting providers located in the United States are among the fastest available. Now, if broadband speed would catch up to the speed and superior connectivity of web hosting services offered by firms located within the United States, ecommerce world-wide could benefit.

Broadband Speed

Broadband speed is a function of network capacity. The more capacity you have, the more speed you can deliver. Speed, in turn, allows more and better internet applications such as photo sharing and video streaming.

The survey included information from 80,000 Internet broadband users who took a real-time speed test at CWA’s Speed Matters website. The survey report breaks down speeds for every state and the District of Columbia. Rhode Island leads the pack with a download speed of 5.01mbps. Alaska has the dubious distinction of being the slowest in the country at .545mbps.  The US ranks 16th in the world if you consider speed alone. If you factor in price and subscribers per household, the US ranks 12th for overall broadband accessibility.

The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation released a report earlier this year outlining our country’s critical need for faster service:  “There are clear signs that nations leading in broadband are translating that lead into increased competitive advantages. The broadband future promises a digital world we can only imagine, with a host of economic and social benefits to all Americans. Yet reaching that future will require first acknowledging the scope of the broadband challenge we face, and responding decisively. By taking these steps now, we will accelerate down the path to our digital future.”

The fact is that broadband connections of any speed can still be hard to come by in some parts of the country, especially rural areas. To rectify the problem and to help move toward a national high speed policy, CWA is supporting a senate bill, the Broadband Data Improvement Act, which raises the broadband speed definition and calls for federal collection of deployment data with grants to states and communities for high speed mapping.

The Federal Communications Commission, which wields major power in the emerging broadband market, defines “high speed” at 200 kilobits per second. The benchmark was adopted several years ago when slower dial-up was more the rule than the exception. The CWA maintains that 200 kilobits is not even recognized as broadband in most developed countries today.  In April the FCC opened a proceeding that could result in the redefinition of what can be advertised as “broadband internet service” in this country.

The Speed of the Internet

“The speed of the internet determines what is possible in a country,” said Cohen. “It determines whether we will have the 21st century networks we need to grow jobs and our economy, and whether we will be able to support innovations in telemedicine, education, public safety and public services to improve our lives and our communities.”

In any event, it will be very interesting to watch broadband-related politics unfold in the coming months. Slow and steady may win the race in some venues – but definitely not online.

 

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