Every quarter, Akamai releases a State of the Internet Report. This study is a widely accepted third-party evaluation of not just the health of the overall internet, but a comparison of states, regions, and countries’ internet speed, adoption, and security.
Earlier this week, Akamai released its 2017 1st Quarter report and it revealed that on a number of key metrics, the internet in the United States took a huge leap forward compared to other countries. The US is now in the top ten countries for adoption of internet speeds over 15 and 25 Mbps as well as the top ten for overall average speed.
But these gains aren’t new or just limited to the last year. According to Akamai’s research, broadband speeds in America over the last five years have increased from an average peak connection speed of 23.4 Mbps to 86.5 Mbps.
This near quadrupling of internet speeds in just five years is the result of constant innovation cycles and aggressive deployment of new technologies across the country. Thanks to the constant process of growth and improvement, Gigabit cities are springing up across the country in both urban and rural communities, further driving average speeds into the stratosphere.
If the last five years are any indication, internet speeds in America will continue to rise, broadband technology will continue to improve, and more Americans will reap the benefits of living in one of the world’s most connected countries.