When a city has gigabit Internet, prices for slower speed tiers drop

The mere presence of gigabit Internet speeds in a metro area drives down the price of plans with slower speeds, according to new industry-funded research. Thus, the data suggests that even customers who don't purchase gigabit Internet benefit from its availability. This research also found—to no one’s surprise—that having more Internet service providers in a particular region drives prices down and that the presence of fast speeds encourages other ISPs to offer higher-speed plans to match their competitors.

The study, titled “Broadband competition helps to drive lower prices and faster download speeds for US residential consumers,” analyzed DSL, cable, and fiber broadband plans from the 100 largest DMAs (designated market areas) in the US. It was written by Analysis Group, an economics consulting firm, with research funding from the Fiber to the Home Council, an industry consortium founded by fiber network equipment manufacturers.