Update: Jio has responded again saying:
With reference to the issue of the fundamental flaw in Ookla’s Speedtest methodology which Jio has pointed out repeatedly, we note that Ookla has now admitted to ‘limitations’ in its application, and that it “does not always indicate the actual data provider in devices with multiple SIMs.” This admission by Ookla reinforces Jio’s submission that there is a clear contamination in primary data collected by Ookla in India, where nearly 90 percent of smartphones are dual SIM devices. Any results that are based on incorrect and contaminated primary data cannot be definitive, only probabilistic. It is a travesty that such results are being passed off as “official” results by a market-leading operator. We will continue to expose such misleading practices and raise it at suitable forums.
Earlier this week Reliance Jio approached Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) against Airtel saying that the claim of Airtel as India’s fastest network in its Ads are false, misleading and incorrect.
Later Airtel said that its advertising campaign is based on the findings by Ookla are based on rigorous and extensive testing across millions of devices and employs the best of data analytics.
Airtel’s Chief Brand Officer Rajiv Mathrani said that the allegations are deliberate attempt to malign its brand and misguide customers through a campaign of misinformation, which is something it now come across on a regular basis, in particular, on social media platforms.
Yesterday Jio said that speedtest results are attributed to the primary SIM even though the SIM for which the data speedtest is conducted is the secondary SIM in the case of dual-SIM phones.
Reliance Jio in a statement yesterday said:
The core issue is that the speedtest results are attributed to the primary sim even though the sim for which the data speedtest is conducted is the secondary sim in the case of dual-sim phones. In India, more than 90% of 4G phones are dual-sim. Therefore, there is no guarantee that the speed which is attributed to Airtel is of the Airtel data network. We are surprised that Ookla in its press release has not talked about this issue even though they had acknowledged the blunder to us earlier. Ookla has baldly stated that they stand by their results and has skirted the main issue. We will initiate actions as we deem fit at appropriate forums. The public should not be misled by these false claims based on the Ookla results.
In response today Ookla said that it applies additional data sources and mechanisms during post-processing to help determine the actual data carrier being tested even if there are two SIM cards on the phone. It also said that Airtel’s margin of victory increased when the complete analysis was performed.
Check out the full statement below.
In recent days, Indian telecommunications company Reliance
Jio has made public statements regarding Ookla, primarily
that Ookla has knowingly and blatantly released misleading
results about the Indian mobile market. Data accuracy and
neutrality is of the utmost importance to Ookla and the
company goes to great lengths to ensure that the information
collected on any Speedtest internet test is verifiably correct.
Ookla fully stands behind the accuracy and reliability of the
methodology used to designate Airtel as ‘India’s Fastest
Mobile Network’.Much of the commentary has focused on dual SIM devices.
The carrier displayed in the Speedtest Android application is
based on the “Active Carrier” value returned by the device.
Due to limitations of the Android platform, the “Active
Carrier” does not always indicate the actual data provider in
devices with multiple SIMs. In these situations, Ookla applies
additional data sources and mechanisms during post-
processing to help determine the actual data carrier being
tested. For example, Ookla matches the connection IP
address recorded during the test to known carrier IP blocks.
This enables Ookla to determine the actual data carrier with a
high degree of confidence. Airtel’s margin of victory
increased when the complete analysis was performed.