Colombia
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.
Colombia
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
Our users enjoyed the fastest average download speeds on WOM’s network
WOM secures the Download Speed Experience award, as our users enjoyed average download speeds of 13.5 Mbps. This gave WOM a winning margin of 0.8 Mbps over second-placed Tigo, from whom WOM took the winning position for this metric. WOM’s Download Speed Experience has been continually improving in Colombia mobile network experience reports since the operator began to be reported in January 2022 — with its score further improving by 1.5 Mbps (12.6%) since the last report.
Claro wins 4G Coverage Experience outright
Claro has led the market in 4G Coverage Experience since the first time the metric was reported in 2020. Now again, with a score of 7.3 points on a 10-point scale, Claro wins 4G Coverage Experience outright in the current report. This score means our users on Claro’s network connected to 4G network in over seven out of 10 locations visited by our users on average. Tigo takes the second spot, 1.5 points behind the winner.
WOM takes Games Experience and Voice App Experience awards
WOM, the latest entrant to Colombia’s mobile market, wins two experiential awards outright — Games Experience and Voice App Experience, with scores of 52.4 and 75 points respectively. WOM takes the crown for both metrics for the second time in a row, having also registered the biggest increases of 6.2 and 3.3 points amongst the competing operators. For Voice App Experience, WOM is also the only Colombian operator that earned an Acceptable (74-80) rating. Claro comes second in both of these categories.
Our Tigo users had the highest 4G Availability in Colombia
Tigo wins the award outright with a score of 95.2%, and a winning margin of 8.1 percentage points ahead of second-placed WOM. 4G Availability score represents the proportion of time our users on this network were connected to 4G services. Tigo continues to lead over the competition in this metric, as it has done over the previous four reports.
WOM is the leader for Excellent Consistent Quality of user experience
WOM wins the award for Excellent Consistent Quality, with a score of 51.9 on a 100 point scale, leading second placed Movistar by a significant margin of 9.2 points. This metric measures how consistently the network met conditions for high demanding applications, such as required for streaming HD video, completing group video calls, and playing multiplayer games. This is the first time the award is being reported for Colombia.
Mobile Experience Awards
Market Overview
In Opensignal's latest Colombia Mobile Network Experience report, we look at the overall experience of our users for the four national mobile operators. Tigo and WOM are the big winners in the awards table — the operators win five and four awards outright respectively, out of the 10 available. Notably, WOM takes home the Download Speed Experience award, having outperformed Tigo which won this award in the last report. The two awards for Consistency of user experience have been added for the first time in Opensignal reports on Colombia – WOM takes the prize for Excellent Consistent Quality and Tigo takes the prize for Core Consistent Quality.
Colombia is still yet to assign 5G-capable spectrum to mobile operators, but the tender is now expected to take place in 2023. In December 2022, Colombia’s ICT ministry (Mintic) specified the frequencies and had set the deadline before the end of 2022 for expressions of interest from operators, with all national operators subsequently answering the call, with an addition of four potential contestants. Claro, Movistar and Tigo have all been trialing 5G on their networks, but operators will need time to enable the new generation technology across their wider networks post spectrum allocation.
WOM has recently finalized the merger of Avantel, absorbing the sister company following restructuring. WOM is the fourth and latest national operator to have entered the mobile market in Colombia, having done so in April 2021.
Claro and Tigo have been repurposing the 1900 MHz spectrum band – Tigo finalized the sunset of its 2G network in November 2022 that was running on this band, and Claro is set to follow in February 2023. The two operators have been shifting their use towards 4G, and Claro separately stated it installed 4G in additional 420 rural towns in the last two years.
Movistar, meanwhile, has submitted a request to the regulator to rescind its usage of the 2.5 GHz frequency, after gaining access to the band in 2021 through acquisition of DirectTV. The operator cited the continual cost of the spectrum band, and further stated that this cost impacted ability to invest in its network. Movistar has not won any user experience awards in the country in reports published since 2020.
Our results in this report are based on measurements collected across all major mobile operators in Colombia – Claro, Movistar, Tigo and WOM – over the period of 90 days between September 1, 2022 and November 29, 2022.
Overall Experience
National Analysis
Tigo is the sole winner of the Video Experience award, with a score of 37.6 points. Operator was significantly ahead of competition – 4.8 points ahead of the runner-up Claro. WOM and Movistar trailed behind, with scores of 29.7 and 31.3 points respectively.
Tigo continues to lead over the competition for the quality of user experience for video streaming – it is the winner in the metric for the fifth time in a row.
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
WOM triumphs in Games Experience with a score of 52.4 points. Claro takes the second place, with a score of 47.2 points — 5.2 points behind the winner.
Since the last report, all operators apart from Tigo have improved their scores. WOM registered the biggest increase of 6.2 points and takes the crown for mobile gaming experience for the second time in a row. Claro is trailing behind in second place, also for the second time in a row.
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
WOM takes the Voice App Experience award outright, with a score of 75 points.
WOM registered the biggest increase of 3.3 points among the competition, and is also the only operator that placed in the Acceptable (74-80) category. WOM therefore takes the crown in this award metric for the second time in a row, having widened the gap over the nearest competition to being 4.2 points ahead of second-placed Claro, having previously led by 0.6 points over Tigo.
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
WOM secures the Download Speed Experience award, as our users enjoyed average download speeds of 13.5 Mbps. This gave WOM a winning margin of 0.8 Mbps over second-placed Tigo. Our WOM users has registered an improvement of 1.5 Mbps (12.6%) in their average download speeds since the last report.
The current report is the first time WOM outperforms Tigo and takes the crown for this award category. WOM’s Download Speed Experience has been continually improving in Colombia mobile network experience reports since the operator began to be reported in January 2022.
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
Tigo is the sole winner of the Upload Speed Experience award, with a score of 7.7 Mbps. Claro comes second, 1 Mbps behind Tigo. Claro registered the largest improvement in the measured upload speed since the last report of 14.5%.
Tigo takes the sole win for Upload Speed for the fifth time in a row, with a considerable lead over the competition.
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
Claro
Movistar
Tigo
WOM
National Analysis
Tigo wins Availability outright, scoring 98.7%. The score represents the proportion of the time that the network users were connected to 3G or better services on average. Tigo shows a lead of one percentage point ahead of the runner-up WOM. Claro and Movistar are in third and fourth place, respectively.
Tigo wins Availability for the second time in a row, when the metric was first reported for the country. WOM similarly scores second place again. All operators registered an improvement in the metric since the last report, with Claro and WOM measuring the largest changes — 1.4 and 1.5 percentage points, respectively.
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
Tigo claims the 4G Availability award outright, with a score of 95.2%. This represents the proportion of time our users on this network were connected to 4G services. Tigo wins the award outright with a winning margin of 8.1 percentage points ahead of second-placed WOM.
Tigo continues to lead over the competition in this metric, as it has done in the previous four reports. Tigo has been continually improving 4G Availability for users of its network, and further improved its score by 1.4 percentage points since the last report. The largest increase since the last report, however, was observed from Claro with six percentage points.
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.
4G Availability shows the proportion of time Opensignal users with a 4G device and a 4G subscription — but have never connected to 5G — had a 4G 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 a score of 7.3 points on a 10-point scale, Claro wins 4G Coverage Experience outright. Tigo takes the second spot, 1.5 points behind the winner, while Movistar comes third, scoring 5.1 points. The score means our users on the winner’s network connected to 4G in over seven out of 10 locations visited by our users on average.
Claro has led 4G Coverage Experience since the first time the metric was reported in 2020. Claro also continually improved the result – since the last report it measured an increase of 0.4 points in this metric. Tigo has secured second place for the third in a row, and continued to widen the gap over Movistar – Tigo improved its score by 0.3 points since the last report.
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
WOM wins the award for Excellent Consistent Quality, with a score of 51.9 on a 100 point scale, leading second placed Movistar by a significant margin of 9.2 points. This is the first time the award is being reported for Colombia in Opensignal reports.
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
Tigo wins the award for Core Consistent Quality, with a score of 71.6 on a 100 point scale, marginally leading over the statistical tie between Movistar and WOM, by around 0.8 points. The three operators together far outperformed Claro with its score of 59.6. This is the first time the award is being reported for Colombia in Opensignal reports.
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