Any strategic consideration about the development of web-based applications in a specific market must take into consideration broadband penetration rates and the performance of last mile public connectivity. This is especially true of applications that use large amounts of bandwidth capacity such Broadband and OTT TV, streaming and online gaming. So if you are looking for good worldwide ISP performance data, one source should be the Akamai State of the Internet Report. In their words:
Each quarter, Akamai publishes a quarterly “State of the Internet” report. This report includes data gathered across Akamai’s global server network about attack traffic, average & maximum connection speeds, Internet penetration and broadband adoption, and mobile usage, as well as trends seen in this data over time.
You can download the free quarterly report here, and also use a fun visualization tool to chart network performance in different countries. Who in the world gets the best broadband access? Find out.
Entrepreneurs around the world often grossly underestimate what it takes to enter the US market. Take for example technology or software, sectors that I know. Attracted by the size of the American market and the potential opportunity to 
