Google is launching a new report that ranks internet service providers based on the quality of their YouTube video playback.
Set to launch next week, the new Video Quality Report will first be available for Canadian users, but reports for other areas are expected to be available in the near future.
The company will rank ISPs by how well they stream HD video content. A “YouTube HD Verified” ranking is the best, meaning an ISP delivers HD videos with quick load times 90 percent of the time.
A “Standard Definition” ranking means the ISP delivers videos in at least 360p with decent load times, and “Lower Definition” is reserved for the ISPs that deliver videos in resolutions lower than 360p with slow loading times and a lot of buffering.
There are serveral factors that contribute to video quality, including the number of copies of a video in Google servers, an ISP’s capacity to receive YouTube content as well as its network in a specific area, and an individual’s Wi-Fi setup.
Slow streaming of online video content is something people complain about constantly, and YouTube has never been immune to that.
This seems to be Google’s way of giving viewers some information as to why videos stream differently in various areas.
Read the official announcement here