South Korea
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.
South Korea
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
SK telecom wins the largest number of awards
With three outright wins in the 5G award categories, alongside a further five outright wins, no other operator was more awarded in South Korea. In fact, SK telecom either wins outright, or jointly wins, every award except one in this report. KT was the only other operator to win any award outright with its 5G Availability victory. SK telecom had the fastest experience in South Korea and the best video experience too.
KT takes the 5G Availability award, but all three operators score highly
KT users experienced an active 5G connection for an impressive 38.2% of their time, ahead of statistically tied scores of 33.1%-34.6% using LG U+ and SK telecom. All three scores are very high compared with operators' 5G Availability scores in other markets.
LG U+ closes the gap on SK telecom to jointly win 5G Reach
On a 10 point scale the two operators had statistically tied scores of 7.2-7.3. However, in the last report SK telecom won the award outright with a score of seven points. Since then, LG U+ users have seen the proportion of locations where they saw a 5G signal increase, with the 5G Reach score increase from 6.6 to 7.3.
The most consistent experience is with SK telecom
SK telecom retains both the Opensignal consistency awards. Users met the minimum thresholds for more demanding applications — Excellent Consistent Quality — 88.9% of the time, ahead of KT's score of 85.4% and LG U+'s score of 79.6%. While for Core Consistent Quality for less demanding applications the scores were closer, ranging from 88.6% to 91.8%, SK telecom users again had the highest score.
On Upload Speed Experience SK telecom now ties with LG U+
Six months ago in the last report LG U+ won the award outright. But now SK telecom and LG U+ users have an identical 17 Mbps speed and so the operators jointly win the award. By comparison KT users experienced overall upload speeds of 13.2 Mbps.
Average 5G download speeds are blisteringly fast on all three operators
SK telecom wins the 5G Download Speed award with a score of 473.1 Mbps, but the average download speed users experienced on the other two operators was astonishingly fast, with both operators only just missing the 400 Mbps mark. By comparison, in many global markets, operators can win a country's 5G Download Speed award with a score half as fast as the speed experienced using any South Korean operator!
Mobile Experience Awards
Market Overview
Expectations remain high in South Korea for the 5G experience. And, despite world-beating 5G scores, there has been disappointment about 5G. This is mainly because of how high the industry set 5G expectations prior to its launch in South Korea, and not the superb quality of 5G experience that operators have enabled.
In the recent Opensignal 5G Global Awards, South Korean operators featured strongly. SK telecom won the global 5G Download Speed award while KT and SK telecom jointly won 5G Games Experience worldwide. Also, South Korea's operators won 5G Global Leader recognition in 5G Availability, 5G Reach, 5G Download Speed, 5G Upload Speed and in 5G Games Experience.
In fact, the 5G experience using mid-band 3.5GHz spectrum bands has been so good that Korea's operators have felt little need to deploy the ultra high capacity 28GHz mmWave bands they secured in a spectrum auction in 2018. As a result, the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) has intervened because operators have missed 28GHz deployment targets that were included in the licenses. KT and LG U+ have seen their 28GHz licenses revoked, while SK telecom has been warned to increase the pace of deployment.
However, with a high quality 5G experience, the adoption of 5G has continued apace. South Korea ended July with 25.1 million 5G subscriptions which accounted for 33.3% of total mobile subscriptions. Not only is 5G extremely fast — see the scores included in this report — but it copes with much higher data usage. MSIT reported that 5G subscribers used an average of 27.9 GB in July compared with 4G/LTE users' 8.4 GB.
Overall Experience
National Analysis
For mobile video streaming, SK telecom wins the award outright with a score of 69.6 on a 100-point scale. The two rival operators scored within 5.1 points of SK telecom.
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
For real-time multiplayer gaming, SK telecom narrowly wins the Games Experience award with a score of 86.1 on a 100 point scale. There were under two points separating all three operators with LG U+ scoring 84.9 and KT reaching 84.3.
Only SK telecom ranked as Excellent (85 or above) in overall gaming experience. This means the vast majority of users deemed this network experience acceptable. Nearly all respondents felt like they had control over the game and they received immediate feedback on their actions. There was not a noticeable delay in almost all cases.
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
There was no significant difference between the three operators in Voice App Experience. The three scores were statistically identical ranging from 81.6-82 on a 100-point scale.
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
Impressively, users on two operators experienced overall average download speeds over the 100 Mbps mark. SK telecom wins the Download Speed Experience award with a score of 129.9 Mbps while KT scored 101 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
LG U+ and SK telecom jointly win the Upload Speed Experience award with identical scores of 17 Mbps. KT users experienced slower average upload speeds of 13.2 Mbps.
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).
5G Experience
National Analysis
All three operators rate as Excellent (75 or above) in 5G Video Experience. This means users had a very consistent experience across all users, video streaming providers and resolutions tested, with fast loading times and almost non-existent stalling.
However, SK telecom narrowly wins the 5G Video Experience award with a score of 79.6 on a 100-point scale. Given SK telecom also wins the overall Video Experience award it means that SK telecom has the best video experience in South Korea.
Definitions
5G Video Experience quantifies the quality of mobile video experienced by Opensignal users on real-world video streams when they were connected to 5G. 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 5G Video Experience, we are directly measuring video streams from end-user devices and using this ITU approach to quantify the video experience observed by our users on each operator’s 5G network 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.
National Analysis
The multiplayer gaming experience in South Korea is Excellent (85 or above) on all of the operators. The vast majority of users deemed this network experience acceptable. Nearly all respondents felt like they had control over the game and they received immediate feedback on their actions. There was not a noticeable delay in almost all cases.
However, KT and SK telecom jointly win the 5G Games Experience award with statistically tied scores of 88.6-89.3 on a 100-point scale.
Definitions
5G Games Experience measures how mobile users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator's 5G network. It analyzes how our users’ multiplayer mobile gaming experience was affected by mobile network conditions including latency, packet loss and jitter. 5G Games Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100.
5G 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 5G Games Experience starts with measuring the end-to-end experience from users’ devices to internet end-points that host real games.
National Analysis
KT and SK telecom jointly win the 5G Voice App Experience award with statistically tied scores of 82.6-83 on a 100-point scale. This reflects the quality of experience when using real-time voice chat applications like KakaoTalk or LINE, among others.
Definitions
5G Voice App Experience quantifies the experience of Opensignal users when using over-the-top voice apps — such as WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook Messenger — on an operator’s 5G network. It uses 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. 5G Voice App Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100.
National Analysis
The average 5G download speeds Korean users enjoyed on all three operators are astonishingly fast. While SK telecom wins the 5G Download Speed award with a score of 473.1 Mbps, the experience on the other two operators only narrowly missed passing the 400 Mbps mark. KT and LG U+ tie for second place with statistically level scores of 395-396.5 Mbps.
This is especially impressive as mid-band spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band powers this result, not in the main mmWave. And, while KT and SK telecom have an ideal 100 MHz channel allocation in 3.5 GHz — greater than most operators to date globally — LG U+ has managed to be competitive with their users 5G speeds despite only having a smaller 80 MHz allocation in this band.
Definitions
5G Download Speed shows the average download speed experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s 5G network. 5G Download Speed for each operator is calculated in Mbps (Megabits per second).
National Analysis
SK telecom wins the 5G Upload Speed award by a clear margin. Its score of 40.6 Mbps is well ahead of its rivals. LG U+ scored 34.3 Mbps while KT users experienced average upload speeds of 32.3 Mbps.
Definitions
5G Upload Speed measures the average upload speeds experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s 5G network. 5G Upload Speed for each operator is calculated in Mbps (Megabits per second).
Coverage
KT
LG U+
SK telecom
National Analysis
There is no statistical difference across the operators in overall Availability. This means the proportion of time that users spent without a mobile signal is the same on KT, LG U+ and SK telecom.
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
5G Availability is very good in South Korea. On all the operators users spent more than one third of their time with an active 5G connection.
However, KT had the highest score (38.2%) and wins the 5G Availability award as a result. LG U+ and SK telecom tie for second place with scores of 33.1%-34.6%.
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.
5G Availability shows the proportion of time Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription had an active 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
In over two thirds of the locations our users visited they saw a 5G signal on all three Korean operators, even on third placed KT which scored 6.9 on a 10 point scale for 5G Reach.
5G had an even greater reach when using joint winners LG U+ and SK telecom, as they had statistically tied scores of 7.2-7.3.
Definitions
5G Reach measures how users experience the geographical extent of an operator’s 5G network. It analyzes the average proportion of locations where users were connected to a 5G network out of all the locations those users have visited. In simple terms, 5G Reach measures the 5G mobile experience in all the locations that matter most to everyday users – i.e. all the places where they live, work and travel. 5G Reach for each operator is measured on a scale from 0 to 10.
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
For more demanding applications our users' experience met the minimum requirements in a greater proportion of tests using SK telecom than on the other operators. SK telecom scored 88.9% in Excellent Consistent Quality compared with 85.4% of tests using KT and 79.6% using LG U+.
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
SK telecom wins the Core Consistent Quality award as well as the Excellent Consistent Quality award for the second report in a row in Opensignal reports. Because it won both consistency awards, SK telecom users had indisputably the most consistent mobile experience in South Korea.
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