New Broadband Illinois Report Examines High-Speed Pricing Across State

Nathan Woodside
Published: July 10, 2013

SPRINGFIELD, Illinois, July 10, 2013 - A new report from Broadband Illinois sheds new light on how prices of residential broadband vary across different speed tiers and geographic locations through Illinois. The 37-page report analyzes the pricing for various broadband speed options and subscription plans across Illinois during the May 2013 timeframe.

According to the GIS team at Broadband Illinois, the purpose of the study is to not find the cheapest service, but to examine patterns in pricing related to speeds. The report also outlines ongoing household patterns in certain geographic locations.

“I believe this report breaks new ground in terms of Illinois', and America's, quantitative understanding of the prices at which broadband service is available throughout the state,” said Drew Clark, Executive Director for Broadband Illinois. “I think that this will truly showcase Illinois' data collection capabilities and highlight them in a positive light. This is a fantastic step forward as part of our ongoing effort to assess the broadband climate in the state of Illinois.”

Information used in the report was gathered by visiting Illinois provider websites during the month of May, 2013.  Data variables recorded for the report includes technology, bundle requirement, if the was for a business or residence, download/upload speeds, price and data caps.

That information was paired with data coverage data collected by Broadband Illinois earlier this year and submitted to the NTIA on April 1 for use in the National Broadband Map.

The result is a comprehensive guide exploring broadband pricing in Illinois through the use of graphs, tables and multiple residential pricing maps divided in speed tiers from under 768 Kbps to greater than 100 Mbps.

The report does not name providers or attempt to analyze the data collected.

“Our goal was not to single out specific carriers or pricing strategies, but to see the trends as a whole,” said Brian Webster Telecom Manager for Broadband Illinois. 

Webster added that over the lifetime of the mapping project, providers have continued to respond to the increased consumer demand for higher bandwidth by upgrading their network capabilities.

“As the speeds have increased, the prices seem to be holding steady or dropping when you compare the cost per megabit of bandwidth,” he said.

Webster said Broadband Illinois plans to update the study in a year and continue to investigate trends and changes of high-speed internet pricing moving forward.