Accenture has revealed its plan to acquire Ookla, a well-known network intelligence and customer experience analytics company recognized globally for its platforms Speedtest and Downdetector. Through this acquisition, Accenture intends to strengthen its ability to help organizations enhance network performance while delivering more reliable digital experiences to customers.
As businesses increasingly rely on digital services, network quality has become a crucial factor in shaping user experiences. Elements such as latency, signal strength, and connectivity stability play just as significant a role as the applications and digital platforms customers interact with. Therefore, by integrating Ookla’s capabilities, Accenture aims to empower enterprises with deeper visibility into the networks that support their digital operations.
Moreover, Accenture plans to combine Ookla’s advanced benchmarking tools, network intelligence insights, and customer experience analytics with its own data and AI-driven solutions. This integration will enable communications service providers, hyperscale cloud companies, and enterprises to better monitor and optimize the performance of Wi-Fi and 5G networks, which power many modern digital services.
Millions of users worldwide already rely on Ookla’s platforms. Speedtest helps individuals measure internet performance, while Downdetector identifies real-time service disruptions. Accenture intends to leverage the vast network data generated by these platforms alongside artificial intelligence to help organizations identify potential connectivity issues earlier and address them before they affect end users.
Additionally, Accenture plans to integrate Ookla’s full portfolio—including Speedtest, Downdetector, Ekahau, and RootMetrics—into its enterprise solutions. Together, these tools provide businesses with detailed insights into network health, outage patterns, and real-world user experiences, allowing organizations to manage digital infrastructure more proactively.
Commenting on the acquisition, Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO of Accenture, said that modern networks have evolved from being simple infrastructure to becoming critical business platforms. She noted that organizations need reliable performance data to improve customer experience, revenue outcomes, and security. By adding Ookla’s capabilities, Accenture aims to help businesses and government institutions strengthen their data foundations while enabling them to scale AI-driven solutions safely and deliver consistent connectivity.
Networks Now at the Heart of Customer Experience
The deal also reflects a broader shift in how companies approach customer experience. Previously, network management mainly fell under IT or telecom teams. However, network performance now directly influences customer satisfaction. As AI-powered platforms and digital services expand, even small connectivity disruptions can lead to failed transactions, frustrated users, or reputational damage.
Manish Sharma, Accenture’s Chief Strategy and Services Officer, emphasized that in today’s environment of omnichannel services and intelligent digital interactions, reliable and low-latency connectivity has become essential for businesses to stay competitive. Tools that provide deeper visibility into network performance help organizations build more resilient digital environments.
Beyond telecommunications, network intelligence now plays a role across industries. As artificial intelligence adoption accelerates, insights from network, device, and application layers are becoming critical for enhancing security and improving operational efficiency.
For instance, in banking and financial services, organizations like Transaction Network Services (TNS) use network-level intelligence and AI to secure contact center voice communications. By analyzing network attributes along with real-time call behavior, companies can verify whether calls originate from legitimate devices and networks, helping detect fraudulent attempts before agents answer them.
Similarly, retailers depend on strong connectivity for mobile payments, digital inventory systems, and in-store engagement tools. Utilities and smart home service providers also rely on stable networks to shift from reactive support to proactive service models. When network performance drops, the customer experience often suffers immediately.
Ookla’s platform captures extensive data across device, application, and network layers, collecting over 1,000 data points during each network test. Accenture plans to utilize this large dataset to power AI-driven insights that help enterprises make faster and smarter decisions.
The company also highlighted several potential benefits from deeper network intelligence. Communications service providers could automate network operations using predictive analytics to improve reliability and reduce costs. Hyperscale cloud providers would gain greater insight into AI infrastructure and edge data center performance. Meanwhile, enterprises deploying private 5G or advanced Wi-Fi networks could detect and fix issues before they disrupt employees or customers.
Sharma added that Ookla’s combined solutions deliver end-to-end network intelligence. While Speedtest and RootMetrics provide detailed performance measurement, Downdetector enables rapid outage detection, and Ekahau helps companies improve Wi-Fi infrastructure for modern digital workplaces.
Founded in 2006, Ookla operates as a division of Ziff Davis and manages one of the world’s largest network data platforms. Its system processes more than 250 million consumer-initiated tests every month, along with controlled testing methodologies that generate insights into network performance and service quality.
Stephen Bye, CEO of Ookla, said that joining Accenture will enable the company to expand its network intelligence capabilities to a broader range of global enterprises. He added that the combined strengths of both organizations will help support communications providers, AI infrastructure platforms, edge data centers, and enterprise networks more effectively.
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