OVBI identifies nearly 6X difference from average user streaming consumption
Jersey City, NJ; July 17, 2023–OpenVault has determined that power users of 1 TB of data vastly eclipse other users when it comes to streaming broadband and gaming consumption, according to the OpenVault Broadband Insights (OVBI) report. The 2Q23 report was issued today by OpenVault, a market-leading source of SaaS-based revenue and network improvement solutions and data-driven insights for the broadband industry.
In a first-of-its-kind breakdown of broadband usage by application category, the OVBI report notes that power users stream more than 2.2 TB of data per month, nearly six times as much as average users. Furthermore, power users’ gaming consumption of 498 GB per month was 2,271% higher than average users’ 21 GB per month. OVBI defines an average user as one who consumes 400-600 GB per month.
“As subscribers flock to faster and faster speed tiers, there is increasing pressure on operator networks to deliver uninterrupted and unimpaired user experiences,” said Mark Trudeau, CEO and Founder of OpenVault. “With deeper visibility into the applications that subscribers are using, operators can proactively understand and strengthen the most vulnerable areas in their networks.”
In addition to the stark streaming and gaming differences between power and average users, the OVBI report also noted that average users dedicate a significantly greater portion of their bandwidth – 20% – to social media, well ahead of both power users (9%) and light users (6%). Light users of less than 100 GB per month expend 92% of their consumption on streaming and less than 1% on gaming. As always, the report leverages data aggregated from OpenVault’s suite of broadband management tools.
Other findings in the 2Q23 report include:
- The monthly average data usage was 533.8 GB, up 8.8% year over year from 490.7 GB in 1Q22.
- Year-over-year upstream data usage growth (14.8%) was greater than downstream data usage growth (8.4%) in 2Q23.
- The percentage of subscribers on gigabit speed tiers more than doubled over the previous year, reaching 31.6% in 2Q23.
As part of its continued analysis of usage by participants in the Affordable Connectivity Plan, OVBI found a notable difference between fully-subsidized subscribers who pay the entirety of their monthly bill with the plan’s $30 allowance, and partially subsidized subscribers who use the $30 allowance to defray part of the cost of higher-priced plans with faster speeds. OVBI found that partially subsidized participants consumed 40.6% more data than non-ACP subscribers, while fully subsidized participants who receive slower speed tiers (50-75Mbps) consumed just 18.2% more data.
OpenVault will host a webinar to elaborate on the report on Thursday, July 26 at 11 a.m. EST. Registration is at https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_lHPsz0_2SluRmMsrj1XmnA.
The entire report is at https://openvault.com/resources/ovbi/. OpenVault also provides continuously updated broadband consumption figures in OpenVault’s Broadband Tracker.
About OpenVault
OpenVault and OpenVault Europe GmbH are market-leading sources of broadband technology solutions and data-driven insights into worldwide broadband consumption patterns. Using the companies’ cloud-based SaaS or on-premises solutions and tools, service providers can optimize network performance, increase revenue, and improve subscriber satisfaction. OpenVault and OpenVault Europe aggregate and analyze the resulting market data to provide unparalleled granular views of consumer usage that can be used to anticipate residential and business broadband trends.
For more information, please visit openvault.com.
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