File picture shows Internet users surfing at a cyber cafe in Kuala Lumpur. — Reuters pic

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 24 — Malaysia ranked at 73rd place among 196 countries in terms of cheapest broadband packages in a survey on 3,351 individual broadband packages.

In the research gathered by BDRC Continental and compiled and analysed by Cable.co.uk during the eight-week period up to 12 October 2017, the study found that Iran offers the world’s cheapest broadband, with an average cost of US$5.37 per month while Burkina Faso is the most expensive, with an average package price of US$954.54 per month.

At 73rd place, Malaysia pays about US$44.83 per month for broadband.

In the Southeast Asia region, Thailand, ranked 27th, has the cheapest broadband at US$26.8 followed by Singapore in 57th place with US$39.03.

Cambodia is ranked at 87th place (US$52.89) while Philippines is ranked at 90th place (US $53.37). Vietnam comes in at 107th place (US$62.44) and Indonesia at 132nd with broadband packages costing up to US$76.02 on average.

Brunei provides the most expensive package price per month at US$267.33.

Six of the top ten cheapest countries in the world for broadband are found in the former USSR (Commonwealth of Independent States or CIS), including Russia itself.

Iran is the cheapest in Asia (as well as cheapest globally) with an average package price of US$5.37 per month, followed by Nepal (US$18.85) and Sri Lanka (US$20.17) — all three ranked among the cheapest in the world.

Within Western Europe, Italy is the cheapest, with an average package price of US$28.89 per month, followed by Germany (US$34.07), Denmark (US$35.90) and France (US$36.34). The UK came in 8th cheapest out of 28, with an average package price of US$40.52 per month.

In the Near East region, war-ravaged Syria came in cheapest with an average monthly price of US$12.15 per month (and ranked fifth overall), with Saudi Arabia (US$84.03), Bahrain (US$104.93), Oman (US$147.87), Qatar (US$149.41) and the United Arab Emirates (US$155.17) providing the most expensive connectivity in the region.

Mexico is the cheapest country in Central America with an average broadband package cost per month of US$26.64, whereas Panama is the most expensive with an average package price of US$112.77 per month.

In North America, Canada offers the cheapest broadband on average (US$54.92), coming in 21 positions ahead of the United States globally (US$66.17). Bermuda provides the most expensive packages in the region with an average price of US$126.80 per month.

Saint-Martin offers the cheapest broadband in the Caribbean, with an average package price of US$20.72 per month, with the British Virgin Islands (US$146.05), Antigua and Barbuda (US$ 153.78), Cayman Islands (US$175.27) and Haiti (US$224.19) at the most expensive end, both regionally and globally.

Sub-Saharan Africa fared worst overall with almost all countries in the most expensive half of the table. Burkina Faso charges residential users a staggering US$954.54 per month for their ADSL. Meanwhile Namibia (US$432.86), Zimbabwe (US$170.00) and Mali (US$163.96) are among the 10 most expensive countries.

All 13 countries in Oceania were found in the most expensive half of the global table. Generally, larger landmasses such as Australia and New Zealand are cheaper than smaller islands in the region.

Fiji, however, is actually the cheapest in Oceania with an average cost of US$57.44. Vanuatu (US$154.07), Cook Islands (US$173.57) and Papua New Guinea (US$597.20) are the most expensive in the region, with the latter coming in second-most expensive in the world.