17.08.2021

“The quality of the internet access services was maintained in 2020, with improvements registered in the fixed internet access services, even in the context of the increased data traffic triggered by the intensified use of these services in the 2020 pandemic year. The ANCOM statistics based on the tests performed on Netograf show that in 2020 Romanian have experienced a national average download speed of 185.8 Mbps for fixed internet, rising by almost 25% compared to the previous year, while the average mobile internet speed remained constant, at 24.2 Mbps. These are remarkable performances in the context of the pandemic and of the increased volume of fixed and mobile communications”, the vice-president of ANCOM, Mr. Eduard Lovin, has said.

National average fixed internet speeds – download and upload

Tests performed by users on Netograf show that in 2020 the national average download speed for fixed internet increased by almost 25% compared to 2019, up to 185.8 Mbps, whereas the average upload speed remained steady at 111.4 Mbps. 

The data registered by means of Netograf relating to the transmission speeds match the general trend resulted from the statistical data reported by the electronic communications providers corresponding to the transmission speeds and the average monthly traffic per inhabitant, calculated by ANCOM based on the providers’ reporting.

Thus, the figures resulted from the Netograf measurements reflect the y.o.y. 16% growth of the very high-speed fixed connections (at least 100 Mbps), the share of these connections reaching 80% at end-2020. The implementation of the solutions required for supporting the higher speeds is also reflected in the major surge in 2020, above the increases registered in the previous years, of the average monthly traffic per inhabitant, 44 GB/inhabitant/month, by more than 50% year-on-year.

County statistics

In general, compared to 2019, one can notice a rising trend in 2020 in the average download and upload speeds for the fixed internet connections at county level.

The average download speeds for fixed internet connections vary from one county to another, ranging between 95.2 Mbps (Covasna) and 235.5 Mbps (Ialomița). As for mobile internet connections, the average download speeds range between 12.9 Mbps (Giurgiu) and 48.9 Mbps (Vrancea).

“As the internet traffic on fixed networks grew by approximately 30% in 2020, triggered by the implementation of telework, the shift of school and university classes into the online and the significant growth of the online entertainment component, the increased transmission speeds from which the users benefitted are an important indicator of the network resilience and of the performance of the internet access service from Romania. Last year, all the providers took measures to monitor more efficiently the available network capacity and to rapidly adjust to the needs, to modernise the network equipment and to simplify and render more efficient the purchasing process”, vice-resident Lovin has added.

National average upload and download speed – mobile internet

The results of the users’ tests on Netograf indicate for 2020 a national average download speed for mobile internet of 24.2 Mbps, this remaining steady compared to 2019, and respectively a national average upload speed of 10.2 Mbps, this falling by 19%.

The ANCOM Report on the quality of the internet access service in 2020 was drawn up based on 322,777 valid tests made on the three types of Netograf apps: for web, for fixed terminals and for mobile terminals.

Along with the download and upload speeds, ANCOM’s Report makes available information on the packet transfer delay and jitter for both fixed and mobile internet access providers, statistics by county regarding the number of tests performed, average download and upload speeds and average delays, as well as information on the internet access service activation term, fault repair time, frequency of end-users’ complaints and the complaint handling term.

About Netograf

Netograf is an online platform developed by ANCOM in order to offer the Romanian internet users an independent, objective and free of charge tool, available 24/7, that helps them check the quality of the internet service they have purchased. The users can thus verify whether their internet access service is of the quality stated in the offer and in the contract concluded with the provider. Moreover, they have access to statistics on the quality parameters values obtained based on the tests carried out by other users of Netograf. The Netograf platform contains the web app, the desktop app for fixed terminals, which can be downloaded from www.netograf.ro, and the Android and iOS mobile apps, available in the dedicated stores (Google Play for Android and App Store for iOS).