Ookla®, the global leader in internet testing and analysis, announced that Zain KSA won the Speedtest Award™ as Fastest Fixed Internet in Saudi Arabia for the first half of 2021, retaining the title for the third time in a row*. The achievement is added to several other accolades Zain KSA has accumulated over the recent years, since its rollout of the region’s largest 5G network.

This recognition reflects Zain KSA’s commitment in maintaining top-notch services, and offering the best fixed internet speeds through its 5G Fiber optic network, which confirms Zain KSA’s role as a primary contributor to the Kingdom-wide digital transformation and the fulfillment of Saudi Vision 2030’s goals, especially as the company retains the largest 5G geographic coverage in the Kingdom, covering 50 cities via more than 4,700 towers. Zain KSA’s 5G network is also the first in the Middle East, Europe, and Africa, and the fourth globally.

Commenting on the award, Chief Technology Officer at Zain KSA, Eng. AbdulRahman Al-Mufadda, said: “Zain KSA’s winning of the Speedtest Award for Fastest Fixed Internet in Saudi Arabia for the third time in a row reflects our commitment to offering the best customer experience, which is our ultimate goal and one that motivates us to focus on the quality and sustainability of the services we provide. In parallel, we are delighted to be providing the best home internet service, which has seen unprecedented demand in light of the new reality, whether for work-from-home or for digital entertainment, particularly e-gaming. We are also proud that this elevated service level has also contributed to improving the Kingdom’s global competitiveness in digital services and the smart economy, in line with Saudi Vision 2030’s goals.

The Speedtest Award is added to Zain KSA’s several other accomplishments during 2021, as the company recently stood out with the best 5G network and data performance in the capital, Riyadh, according to a report by umlaut, the global network benchmarking leader. This cutting-edge network contributed to Riyadh having the fastest 5G among the capitals of the world, ahead of highly-connected hubs including Tokyo and Dublin. The report also revealed that Zain KSA retains the strongest 5G coverage in Riyadh, outperforming its closest competitor by 27%. Zain KSA customers also enjoyed the highest upload and download speeds, and the fastest YouTube video start time with excellent resolution. The reliability of Zain KSA’s 5G data service also showed an excellent performance with a reliability and success rates of at least 98.8%.

Additionally, in the Meqyas report, issued by the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), Zain KSA was first in delivering the best 5G services during the first quarter of 2021, ranking first in 5G deployment across the regions and cities covered by the report besides being recognized as the best performing operator in the mobile 5G average download speed. Also, Opensignal, the independent global standard for analyzing consumer mobile experience, has granted Zain KSA three awards: “Best 5G Availability”; “Best 5G Download Speed”; and “Best Download Speed Experience - 5G Users”. In the digital entertainment sector, Zain KSA ranked first in the Game Mode report, issued by CITC, for the first quarter of 2021, recording top connectivity performance in 4 of the most popular video games in the Kingdom and they include: Fortnite, FIFA 21, APEX Legends, and Dota 2, in addition to having the Kingdom’s fastest average response time achieved by its 5G mobile network.

* Based on analysis by Ookla® of Speedtest Intelligence® data for periods Q1-Q2 2020, Q3-Q4 2020 and Q1-Q2 2021. Ookla trademarks used under license and reprinted with permission.