While most consumers equate the speed of their internet line with the capability of their ISP, the truth is that this is not an accurate assessment of quality says Edward Lawrence, Director of Business Development for Workonline Communications.

Lawrence was responding to an article published by South Africa's Internet Service Providers' Association (ISPA), which described broadband speed test results as being "as accurate to consumer decision making as infomercials".

According to the organisation many popular websites facilitate speed tests on fixed-line or mobile broadband connections, and media outlets also conduct 'out of lab' tests during which broadband speeds advertised by ISPs are compared to actual speeds "achieved at very specific places and points in time".

In the article Graham Beneke, ISPA chair, is quoted as saying that speed is not 'the alpha and omega of the web experience', and there are different ways to measure it. "Consumers also need to take into account their selected application. For a quality online gaming experience, for example, stability and ping times take precedence over pure speed," he says.

Lawrence concurs and said that while many consumers use speed tests to evaluate whether they are receiving the service they are entitled to from their service provider, these tests can be misleading.

"Essentially, speed tests only represent a rate at which data is being transferred over the network - reporting an average quantity rather than giving any important information about the quality of the service. The figure presented at the end of the tests is a result of many different elements or factors, but is thought to be solely a reflection of the capacity of the ISP," he says.

According to Lawrence by its nature, a speed test reveals some (peak) rate at which data was transferred when the network is (over-)saturated. It is nearly always expressed as a 'per second' measure. "That means it doesn't capture the instantaneous effects of the service, as a lot of packets can pass by in a second. Yet the user experience solely comprises the continuous passing of those instantaneous moments of service delivery."

The best latency possible to every other network in the world is how Lawrence describes a 'solid' connection. "As little variations in latency as possible (jitter), depending on the application you are trying to make use of as some are more sensitive (like voice) than others (like email), to every other network in the world."

Other factors to consider is bandwidth, in other words how much capacity is available to every point on the global internet (which is linked to peering and how the upstream(s) manage their networks depending on the path that the traffic takes), says Lawrence.

Industry experts agree that the issue is more complex than one would assume and technical aspects, such as the 'long fat pipe issue' (the distance to the content and bandwidth required), cannot be sidelined.

Lawrence also agrees with the ISPA's assertion that while speed has emerged as the most common metric for assessing the quality of broadband offerings, it is important for consumers to be aware that speed measurements for the same device can vary.

"There are many factors that can have a negative impact ... such as network congestion outside of the ISP or the NSPs network, the distance from an IX and how many peers/routes are present at that IX, how the other networks are managed or peered etc," Lawrence continues.