Quick Q&A with Leetline

Can you give us an overview of what Leetline is?

Darren Elsom: We are an independent ISP that exists solely to deliver high bandwidth, low latency broadband connections to gamers. Because we prioritise certain packets from the major gaming services we can promise users rock solid connections with smooth performance and no jitter. 

In your view, what are some of the problems faced by gamers using the main commercial ISPs?

DE: The main issue is usually with latency. It doesn’t matter if your ISP promises you lightning fast speeds, the reality is that you will experience issues with your broadband at certain peak times. All the big ISPs sell on ‘maximum speeds’ meaning internet users are often faced with significantly lower speeds and performance than what they’ve signed up for. High latency results in ‘throttled’ gameplay and jitter, which is incredibly frustrating for gamers who want to play at peak times, like during the evening. I can’t think of any other industry where it has become acceptable for huge companies to over-promise and under-deliver in this way.

How can niche gaming ISPs like yours solve these problems?

DE: We are lucky in that we are part of Trunk Networks, and therefore have access to a strong, established network with 100Gb capacity across all of our core and backbone links. 

And because we are small and niche, we are able to deliver the right level of customer service to gamers. We know exactly what our users need, so we can manage their expectations individually, which is really difficult for these massive, faceless organisations with millions of customers to do. In some ways, we are doing things the old-fashioned way: working hard to ensure every customer can consistently enjoy the maximum broadband speeds available at their property.

What does the future hold for gaming ISPs?

DE: We have seen this year just how important broadband is. With the pandemic, and more people working from home and staying indoors, gaming is a huge part of everyday life for millions of people.

The arrival of full fibre broadband is really exciting. At the moment, many properties still have to contend with copper wire connections, which means speeds are always going to be lower. As more households get FTTP (fibre to the premises), there is the potential for much faster broadband. Then, it is a question of ensuring gamers know there are specialist ISPs out there who can help them make the most of that speed.