NEW GLOBAL BROADBAND PRICING LEAGUE REVEALED – UK BROADBAND STILL POOR VALUE FOR MONEY COMPARED TO REST OF EUROPE

* 3,288 fixed-line broadband deals in 211 countries were analysed by broadband pricing comparison experts at Cable.co.uk between 29 October 2020 and 9 December 2020 * The UK came fourth cheapest of 29 countries studied in Western

Europe and 67th in the world overall, with an average package price of USD 34.78. However, due to lower average speeds compared to much of Europe, it fared far worse in terms of value for money, coming in 25th of 29 countries in Western Europe and 93rd in the world, with a cost per 1Mbps of bandwidth, per month, of USD 1.06

* Ukraine currently offers the world's cheapest fixed-line broadband, with an average monthly cost of USD 6.41 per month
* Eritrea is the world's most expensive country to get a fixed-line broadband package, with an average package price of USD 2,666.24 per month
* The United States is one of the most expensive developed Western nations at 131st place overall, and an average package cost of exactly USD 59.99 per month - a 20% increase over prices measured at the end of 2019
* Meanwhile, five of the top ten cheapest countries that were formerly a part of the USSR (now collectively known as the Commonwealth of Independent States or CIS), including the Russian Federation itself, which is the world's third cheapest country, with an average package cost of just USD 7.50, one eighth the cost of broadband in the USA
* Sub-Saharan Africa fared worst overall with all but seven of the 37 countries in the region sitting in the most expensive half of the table, and 19 in the most expensive quarter
* Cable.co.uk's global telecoms research is regularly featured in

Data from 3,288 fixed-line broadband packages in 211 countries were gathered and analysed by Cable.co.uk between 29 October 2020 and 8 December 2020.

Ukraine offers the world's cheapest broadband, with an average cost of USD 6.41 per month. The East African nation of Eritrea is the most
expensive place in the world to get fixed-line broadband, with an average package price of USD 2,666.24 per month.

Bhutan is the cheapest country in which to buy broadband in the Asia Excl. Near East region (as well as fourth-cheapest globally) with an average package price of USD 8.71 per month, followed by Sri Lanka (USD 9.58) and Iran (USD 9.60) - all three rank among the top 10 cheapest in the world. Timor- Leste (USD 107.33), Brunei Darussalam (USD 137.62) and Macau (USD 307.74) provide the most expensive package prices per month in the region.

Of the three countries included in the study in the Baltic region, all ranked in the top 60 cheapest countries in the world. Lithuania came out on top in the region with an average annual package price of USD 13.35. It also ranked 19th in the world. Latvia is a close second in 27th place overall (USD 16.99). Estonia is the most expensive in the region, but still among the cheapest in the world - 55th cheapest overall, and with
an average package price of USD 30.34.

Saint-Martin (France) offers the cheapest broadband of the 29 countries included in the study in the Caribbean, with an average package price of USD 24.66 per month. This is closely followed by Dominican Republic (USD 26.78), and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (USD 44.40). The region as a whole is a mixed bag, with many of the countries included finding themselves at the most expensive end of the table. Antigua and Barbuda (USD 129.14), Cayman Islands (USD 170.03) and British Virgin Islands (USD 179.00) are all extremely expensive both for the region and for the world.

Mexico remains the cheapest country to buy a broadband deal in Central America, with an average broadband package cost per month of USD 29.01. Panama is now the most expensive with an average package price of USD 66.05 per month. It would be fair to say that all ten countries measured in Central America ended up mid-table, none faring particularly well, or particularly poorly.

Five of the top ten cheapest countries in the world are found in the former USSR (Commonwealth of Independent States or CIS), including the Russian Federation itself with an average package cost of just USD 7.50 per month. Conversely, the United States has some of the most expensive broadband in the world, coming in 131st place with an average monthly package cost of USD 59.99.

In the Eastern Europe region, 13 countries were measured in total. All of them find themselves well inside the top half of the table, the region as a whole faring extremely well, broadly speaking. Romania (USD 10.59), Bulgaria (USD 12.69), and Hungary (USD 15.45) are the cheapest in the region, while Albania (USD 28.99), Northern Macedonia (USD 29.79), and Slovenia (USD 36.41) are the most expensive.

In the Near East region, war-ravaged Syria came in cheapest with an average monthly price of USD 6.69 per month (and ranked second overall), with Kuwait (USD 77.98), Oman (USD 91.04), Saudi Arabia (USD 107.27), United Arab Emirates (USD 111.20) and Qatar (USD 116.73) providing the most expensive connectivity in the region.

Northern Africa consists of just six countries that qualified for the study, three faring particularly well, a couple fairly average and one in the lower half of the table. The cheapest countries are Tunisia (USD 11.65), Egypt (USD 17.83), and Algeria (USD 19.87), all three of which are in the top 40 countries globally. Libya is the region's outlier, costing a rather expensive USD 70.67 per month on average for a broadband package, and finishing in 145th place globally.

In North America, consisting of only four countries, the United States offers the cheapest broadband on average (USD 59.99), coming in 23 positions ahead of Canada globally (USD 76.14). Greenland provides the most expensive packages in the region with an average price of USD 130.29 per month. No country in the region fares well compared to much of the world, with the cheapest country - United States - reaching only 131st place.

14 of the 16 countries studied in Oceania are found in the most expensive half of the global table (New Caledonia and Fiji being the only exceptions). Generally, though, larger landmasses such as Australia and New Zealand are cheaper than smaller island states. Christmas Island (USD 148.30), Vanuatu (USD 160.13) and Samoa (USD 192.84) are the most expensive in the region, as well as some of the most expensive places to
get a broadband package in the world.

The study looked at a total of ten countries in South America. Of these, Argentina is the cheapest place to get a broadband deal, with an average package price of USD 19.49. Thanks to hyperinflation, Venezuela once again could not be measured in this study. The most expensive territory by far for fixed-line broadband is the Falkland Islands, where the average cost per month comes in at USD 149.38.

Sub-Saharan Africa fares worst overall with most of its 37 included countries in the most expensive half of the table. Somalia is the cheapest in the region, coming in 30th in the world, and with an average package price of USD 19.15. Eritrea, meanwhile, charges residential users an average of USD 2,666.24 per month for fixed-line broadband, making it the most expensive in the world. Burundi (USD 370.00), Comoros (USD 414.01), and Mauritania (USD 712.46) join Eritrea as the most expensive countries in the region, and constitute the four most expensive countries in the world.

Within Western Europe, France is the cheapest, with an average package price of USD 32.16 per month, followed by Italy (USD 32.73), and Portugal (USD 33.31). The UK comes in 4th cheapest out of 29 Western European nations (and 67th cheapest worldwide), with an average package price of USD 34.78 per month. However, due to lower average speeds compared to much of Europe, it fares far worse in terms of value for money, coming in 25th of 29 countries in Western Europe, and 93rd in the world, with a cost per 1Mbps of bandwidth, per month, of USD 1.06.

This year has been slightly unusual in that normally we would see the global average cost falling. There is a small rise from USD 46.13 to USD 48.85, or roughly 5.9%. Whether the global events of 2020 have any bearing on this is difficult to prove either way.

In a previous report [16], Cable.co.uk analysed over half a billion broadband speed tests to rank 221 countries by the average internet speed they offer. Cable.co.uk has also measured the cost of 1GB of mobile phone data in 230 countries [17]. Cable.co.uk also recently analysed the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown periods on global broadband speeds [18].

Commenting on the findings of the research internationally, Dan Howdle, consumer telecoms analyst at Cable.co.uk, said:

"_For the first time since taking these yearly measurements, the average cost of a broadband package globally hasn't fallen. Whether or not this is related to the pandemic and other, destabilising global events is a matter for further study, however. We have also seen a substantial number of countries upgrading their infrastructure in the last 12 months, with available speeds of 1Gbps becoming increasingly common.

"As in previous years, however, the countries with slow, patchy broadband infrastructure that supplies only a fraction of the population tend to be the most expensive, and their growth in terms of available speeds either slow or non-existent."

Commenting on the findings of the research as regards the UK, Dan Howdle, consumer telecoms analyst at Cable.co.uk, said:

"The UK does well in terms of the absolute average cost of a package, but it's what you get for your money where the UK is falling further and further behind most of Europe.

_"1Mbps of bandwidth in the UK will cost you on average USD 1.06 per month, compared to USD 0.12 in Sweden and Malta, and USD 0.13 in Andorra, Portugal and Jersey. This comes as no surprise when you consider that, apart from Virgin Media, which owns its own network, and some very small local providers, the speeds available to UK households have not significantly changed for the majority of the UK population in the last five to six years. Prices, meanwhile, have risen steadily."