Since May 2011, and following on from our most recent Snapshot of Internet speed and pricing, we have been regularly assessing the affordability of Internet broadband service across the Caribbean. Here, we update our findings on affordability, and discuss some of the changes that have occurred since the last exercise.
Approach
In our most recent Snapshot: 2016 update of Internet speeds and pricing across the Caribbean, we examined the variation of fixed (wired and wireless) Internet download speeds and monthly pricing for select Internet plans across 18 Caribbean countries. Specifically, and focusing on a sample of ISPs, we:
- determined the best monthly rates for a fixed broadband Internet service plan with an advertised download speed of 2 Mbps, and
- identified the best fixed broadband Internet plan by advertised download speed for up to USD 60.00.
Having examined monthly pricing, this review focuses on the affordability of those Internet plans. The prices captured in the Internet speed and spend exercise have been compared against estimated monthly income, based on per capita Gross National Income (GNI) figures, sourced from the United Nations. The resulting ratios, which have been expressed as percentages, indicate the proportion of an individual’s income that would be spent on the stated plans, and hence indicates the extent to which they might be affordable to the average consumer.
How affordable is Internet service in 2016?
Figure 1, shows the percentage of monthly income that could be spent on an Internet service plan with an advertised download speed of 2 Mbps. Only eight countries have an ISP that offers a 2 Mbps plan. In the countries not shown – Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, the British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Grenada, Guyana, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and the Turks and Caicos Islands – their ISPs did not offer a 2 Mbps plan, though higher speed ones were available.
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