Have you ever wondered how our internet quality and prices compare to other countries in the world? Well, the latest Digital Quality of Life Index by Netherlands-based VPN service company Surfshark can give us an insight into just that, though the findings may actually surprise some of you.
A study on the quality of digital wellbeing across 117 countries or approximately 92% of the global population, the study indexes each country according to five pillars that impact a population’s overall digital quality of life. The five pillars include internet affordability, internet quality, e-infrastructure, e-security, e-government.
In terms of the overall digital quality of life index, Malaysia is ranked 38th this year, dropping 7 places from our 31st place last year. Meanwhile, for the same overall category in Asia, we are only behind Israel, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Cyprus in the rankings, placing 6th.
As for internet affordability, our country is ranked 5th in Asia and 16th globally. In fact, our internet prices have become more affordable compared to what they were in 2021. However, in terms of internet quality, we are quite lagging behind other countries, placing 11th in Asia and 41st in the world. For this particular category, our country is only 12 per cent better than the global average, with our mobile internet speed dropping to 67th in the world with an average 34.5Mbps.
Completing the study are electronic infrastructure, electronic security and electronic government, whereby our country is ranked 32nd, 4oth and 29th in the world respectively. Overall, quite an impressive performance from Malaysia, especially compared to other more established countries in the world.
What do you guys think? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!
Also read: Annuar Musa: 1,000 Schools To Be Given High-Speed 5G Internet By The End of 2022