Bolivia
Opensignal is the independent global standard for analyzing consumers' connectivity experiences. Our industry reports are the definitive guide to understanding what happens when people use their mobile and broadband connections in their daily life.
Bolivia
Opensignal is the independent global standard for analyzing consumers' connectivity experiences. Our industry reports are the definitive guide to understanding what happens when people use their mobile and broadband connections in their daily life.
Key Findings
Viva is the outright winner of the Availability award
With an impressive score of 98%, Viva wins the Availability award outright meaning our users on this network were connected to 3G or better services for 98% of the time. Following closely, Entel and Tigo are in a statistical tie with scores just above 96%.
Viva wins the Voice App Experience award but shares the Video and Games Experience awards with Tigo
Looking at the experiential awards, Viva is the outright winner for Voice App Experience scoring 77.4 points on a 100-point scale taking a lead of 2.6 points over second placed Tigo. Entel placed third with a score of 71.7 points. Our Tigo and Viva users in Bolivia did not see any statistically significant difference in their experience when playing multiplayer mobile games and streaming videos on cellular connection. Therefore, Tigo and Viva are joint winners for Games and Video Experience awards having scores in the range of 48.3-49.7 and 41-42.6 respectively.
Tigo wins both Excellent and Core Consistent Quality awards outright
Tigo met the minimum recommended performance thresholds for both Excellent Consistent Quality (HD video, group video conference calls and gaming) and Core Consistent Quality (lower performance applications including SD video, voice calls and web browsing) in the highest number of tests in Bolivia. As a result, Tigo wins both awards outright, scoring 63.1% and 83.3%, respectively.
Entel and Tigo jointly win the 4G Coverage Experience award
Entel and Tigo jointly win the 4G Coverage Experience award outright with identical scores of 5.2 points on a 10 point scale. This means that users on these operators’ network connected to its 4G network in more than five out of 10 locations. Viva placed third with a score of 4.2 points.
All three Bolivian operators share the award for Download and Upload Speed Experience
Due to three-way statistical ties for speed awards, all three Bolivian operators Entel, Tigo and Claro jointly win the Download and Upload Speed Experience awards. Users on the three operators’ networks saw average download speeds of 14.7-15.3 Mbps and average upload speeds ranging between7 and 7.6 Mbps.
Mobile Experience Awards
Market Overview
Our first report analyzing the Bolivian mobile market reveals a fiercely competitive landscape in the country. Five out of the nine awards available are joint wins shared between two or more operators. When it comes to outright wins, Viva takes the awards for Voice App Experience and Availability while Tigo wins both Core and Excellent Consistent Quality awards. While there is a three-way tie for Download and Upload Speed Experience awards, Tigo and Viva jointly win Games and Video Experience awards. Entel and Tigo share the 4G Coverage Experience award.
While the Bolivian mobile market has been quiet in recent times, the biggest event that has happened in the telecoms sector is the equity sale of NuevaTel, which operates under the Viva brand name. Trilogy International Partners, recently announced that it made an agreement to transfer 71.5% of its equity interest in NuevaTel (PCS de Bolivia) S.A. (Viva) to Balesia Technologies, Inc.
In this report we examine the mobile network experience of the three main mobile network operators in Bolivia: Entel, Viva and Tigo, over a period of 90 days starting on February 1, 2022 and ending on May 1, 2022, to see how they fared.
Overall Experience
National Analysis
Due to statistically tied scores of 41.0-42.6 points, Viva and Tigo jointly win the Video Experience award. Entel placed third with a score of 37.3 points on a 100-point scale. Video Experience quantifies the quality of mobile video experienced by Opensignal users on real-world video streams.
Definitions
Opensignal’s Video Experience quantifies the quality of video streamed to mobile devices by measuring real-world video streams over an operator's networks. The metric is based on an International Telecommunication Union (ITU) approach, built upon detailed studies which have derived a relationship between technical parameters, including picture quality, video loading time and stall rate, with the perceived video experience as reported by real people. To calculate video experience, we are directly measuring video streams from end-user devices and using this ITU approach to quantify the overall video experience for each operator on a scale from 0 to 100. The videos tested include a mixture of resolutions — including Full HD (FHD) and 4K / Ultra HD (UHD) — and are streamed directly from the world’s largest video content providers.
In addition to Video Experience, we report on the following metrics related to video experience:
- 5G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Video Experience – 5G Users: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G video experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users on an operator’s 3G network.
National Analysis
Games Experience is another experiential metric where Tigo and Viva share an award. With scores of 48.3-49.7, Tigo and Viva end up in a two-way statistical tie, meaning users on these two operators’ network did not see any statistically significant difference in their experience while playing multiplayer games on their smartphones. Entel placed third with a score of 38.2 points.
Definitions
Opensignal’s Games Experience measures how mobile users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator’s network. Measured on a scale of 0-100, it analyzes how our users’ multiplayer mobile gaming experience is affected by mobile network conditions including latency, packet loss and jitter.
Games Experience quantifies the experience when playing real-time multiplayer mobile games on mobile devices connected to servers located around the world. The approach is built on several years of research quantifying the relationship between technical network parameters and the gaming experience as reported by real mobile users. These parameters include latency (round trip time), jitter (variability of latency) and packet loss (the proportion of data packets that never reach their destination). Additionally, it considers multiple genres of multiplayer mobile games to measure the average sensitivity to network conditions. The games tested include some of the most popular real-time multiplayer mobile games (such as Fortnite, Pro Evolution Soccer and Arena of Valor) played around the world.
Calculating Games Experience starts with measuring the end-to-end experience from users’ devices to internet end-points that host real games. The score is then measured on a scale from 0 to 100.
In addition to Games Experience, we report on the following metrics related to games experience:
- 5G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Games Experience – 5G Users: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G games experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO) network.
National Analysis
Viva is the outright winner of the Voice App Experience award scoring 77.4 points on a 100 point scale. Trailing by 2.6 points, Tigo placed second, scoring 74.8 points. Both Viva and Tigo placed in the Acceptable (74-80) category meaning some users on these operators’ network were satisfied while some users experienced perceptible call quality impairments. Listeners were generally able to comprehend without repetition. In third place, Entel scored 71.7 points and placed in the Poor (66-74) category.
Definitions
Opensignal's Voice App Experience measures the quality of experience for over-the-top (OTT) voice services — mobile voice apps such as WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook Messenger — using a model derived from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) approach for quantifying overall voice call quality and a series of calibrated technical parameters. This model characterizes the exact relationship between the technical measurements and perceived call quality. Voice App Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100.
In addition to Voice App Experience, we report on the following metrics related to voice app experience:
- 5G Voice App Experience: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Voice App Experience – 5G Users: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G voice app experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Voice App Experience: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Voice App Experience: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO) network.
National Analysis
When it comes to average download speeds, there is a three-way statistical tie, as a result of which, Entel, Tigo and Viva jointly win the Download Speed Experience award. Our users in Bolivia saw average download speeds between 14.7 and 15.3 Mbps.
Definitions
Measured in Mbps, Download Speed Experience represents the typical everyday speeds a user experiences across an operator’s mobile data networks.
In addition to Download Speed Experience, we report on the following metrics related to download speeds:
- 5G Download Speed: The average download speed observed by Opensignal users with active 5G connections.
- Download Speed Experience – 5G Users: The average download speeds experienced by Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator’s networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G download speeds along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Download Speed: The average downlink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 4G.
- 3G Download Speed: The average downlink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO).
National Analysis
For Upload Speed Experience, Entel, Tigo and Vivo are in a three-way statistical tie. This makes all three Bolivian operators joint winners for the Upload Speed Experience award, clocking in with average upload speeds over 7 Mbps. With consumption habits changing and users creating and distributing more content including high resolution images and videos, having a good upload speed is becoming increasingly critical.
Definitions
Upload Speed Experience measures the average upload speeds for each operator observed by our users across their mobile data networks. Typically upload speeds are slower than download speeds, as current mobile broadband technologies focus resources on providing the best possible download speed for users consuming content on their devices. As mobile internet trends move away from downloading content to creating content and supporting real-time communications services, upload speeds are becoming more vital and new technologies are emerging that boost upstream capacity.
In addition to Upload Speed Experience, we report on five supporting metrics related to upload speeds:
- 5G Upload Speed: The average upload speed observed by Opensignal users with active 5G connections.
- Upload Speed Experience – 5G Users: The average upload speeds experienced by Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator’s networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G upload speeds along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Upload Speed: The average uplink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 4G.
- 3G Upload Speed: The average uplink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO).
Coverage
Entel
Tigo
Viva
National Analysis
Viva is the outright winner of the Availability award since our Viva users spent the greatest proportion of their time connected to either a 3G, 4G or 5G connection — 98.0%. Tigo and Entel were close behind in second place with statistically tied scores of 96.4%-96.7%.
Definitions
Our availability metrics are not a measure of a network’s geographical extent. They won’t tell you whether you are likely to get a signal if you plan to visit a remote rural or nearly uninhabited region. Instead, they measure what proportion of time people have a network connection, in the places they most commonly frequent — something often missed by traditional coverage metrics. Looking at when users have a connection rather than where, provides us with a more precise reflection of the true user experience.
We also keep track of the instances that leave mobile users most frustrated: when there is no signal to connect to at all. The most common dead zones users struggle with occur indoors. As most of our availability data is collected indoors (as that’s where users spend most of their time), we’re particularly astute at detecting areas of zero signal.
Our availability metrics take a user-centric, time-based approach that complements the user-centric and geographical-based methodology used by our reach metrics.
Availability shows the proportion of time all Opensignal users on an operator’s network had either a 3G, 4G or 5G connection.
Map Definition
The coverage maps show the locations where we received measurements from users connecting with 3G or better mobile service. Each map provides an indication of the areas in which it is possible to obtain mobile service from that mobile operator.
National Analysis
With identical scores of 5.2 points on a 10 point scale, Entel and Tigo are joint winners of the 4G Coverage Experience award. This means our users on Entel and Tigo’s network connected to 4G services in more than five out of 10 locations they visited. With a score of 4.2 points, Viva comes in second, 1.1 points behind the joint winners.
Definitions
4G Coverage Experience measures how mobile subscribers experience 4G coverage on an operator’s network. Measured on a scale of 0-10, it analyzes the locations where customers of a network operator received a 4G signal relative to the locations visited by users of all network operators.
In simple terms, 4G Coverage Experience measures the mobile coverage experience in all the locations that matter most to everyday users — i.e. all the places where they live, work and travel. It considers all the areas that Opensignal users visit, the portion of locations that 4G is available to them, and locations that more users visit have higher importance to them.
Map Definition
The coverage maps show the locations where we received measurements from users connecting with 3G or better mobile service. Each map provides an indication of the areas in which it is possible to obtain mobile service from that mobile operator.
Consistency
National Analysis
With the highest Excellent Consistent Quality score of 63.1%, Tigo wins the award for Excellent Consistent Quality. This metric measures the percentage of tests where our users’ network met the minimum recommended performance thresholds for high definition (HD) video, group video conference calls and gaming. Coming in second, Viva was trailing behind Tigo by nine percentage points with a score of 54.1%. Entel was in third place with an Excellent Consistent Quality of 42.1%.
Definitions
Consistent Quality measures how often users’ experience on a network was sufficient to support common applications’ requirements. It measures download speed, upload speed, latency, jitter, packet loss, time to first byte and the percentage of tests attempted which did not succeed due to a connectivity issue on either the download or server response component.
Full details on how the Consistent Quality metrics — Excellent Consistent Quality and Core Consistent Quality — are calculated can be found here.
Excellent Consistent Quality is the percentage of users’ tests that met the minimum recommended performance thresholds to watch HD video, complete group video conference calls and play games.
National Analysis
Core Consistent Quality is the percentage of users’ tests that met the minimum recommended performance thresholds for lower performance applications including standard definition (SD) video, voice calls and web browsing. Tigo is the winner in this category as well with a Core Consistent Quality score of 83.3%, giving it a 2.5 percentage point lead over second placed Viva. Entel was close behind with an Excellent Consistent Quality of 78.3%.
Definitions
Consistent Quality measures how often users’ experience on a network was sufficient to support common applications’ requirements. It measures download speed, upload speed, latency, jitter, packet loss, time to first byte and the percentage of tests attempted which did not succeed due to a connectivity issue on either the download or server response component.
Full details on how the Consistent Quality metrics — Excellent Consistent Quality and Core Consistent Quality — are calculated can be found here.
Core Consistent Quality is the percentage of users’ tests that met the minimum recommended performance thresholds for lower performance applications including SD video, voice calls and web browsing.
Related Analysis
Our Methodology
Collecting billions of individual measurements daily from over 100 million devices globally, Opensignal independently analyzes mobile and broadband user experience on every major network operator around the globe.
About Opensignal
Opensignal is the leading global provider of independent insights into consumers' connectivity experiences and choice of carrier. Our proprietary insights into mobile and broadband networks give operators the solutions they need to profitably compete and win, from executive level scorecards and public validation to pin-point level engineering analytics and consumer decision dynamics.
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Confidence Intervals
For every metric we calculate statistical confidence intervals indicated on our graphs. When confidence intervals overlap, our measured results are too close to declare a winner. In those cases, we show a statistical draw. For this reason, some metrics have multiple operator winners.
In our bar graphs we represent confidence intervals as boundaries on either sides of graph bars.
In our supporting-metric charts we show confidence intervals as +/- numerical values.
Why confidence intervals are vital in analyzing mobile network experience