Optus Reduce Game Lag By 30%, Traffic Up By 75%
Optus has declared war on online gaming lag with its new Game Path service, which it says will reduce lag by up to 30 per cent, and follows the beta launch of competitor Telstra’s Game Optimiser last month.
Global telcos have reported that online gaming traffic is up by as much as 75 per cent during the COVID-19 lockdown. As networks are complex, there are often many different paths that gaming traffic can take, and selecting sub-optimal routes can lead to lag and slow connection speeds.
Game Path, a $10 add-on for Optus NBN customers, will cut lag by determining the fastest path to game servers and routing customer traffic down that path.
According to Optus VP for TV, Content & Product Development, Clive Dickens, more than half of hardcore gamers cite lag as the biggest pain point when playing online, and the Windows 10 application could mean “the difference between life and death” in a game.
“Optus is already ranked as #1 for NBN download speeds by the ACCC for the last four quarters. Game Path will add another dimension to our Optus NBN service offering for serious gamers by addressing lag and going a long way to reduce it where it occurs – outside of the home on the open internet,” he said.
Game Path is available from Optus as of this week. Rival Telstra’s Game Optimiser, which enables customers to prioritise gaming traffic and individual devices within their home networks; choose the regions they play in by connecting to specific game servers; and improve ping and performance, launched its open beta in mid-September.