October 02, 2007
Report: VoIP, Mobile, Broadband Enjoy Growth in North America
By Greg Galitzine, Group Editorial Director
Paul Budde Communication has released a report entitled, 2007 North America — Telecoms, Broadband and Mobile Statistics. The report contains 152 statistical tables providing information on the major North American telecommunications sectors, including fixed-line, mobile, broadband and broadcasting. The report is made up of tables only.
Below readers will find excerpts from the report’s executive summary, which show that mobile and broadband growth is the norm across North America. Also of interest is the fact that VoIP
continues to grow in Canada and the U.S. This is significant to note, as recent press surrounding providers such as SunRocket and Vonage (News - Alert) would lead one to believe that VoIP was not enjoying widespread acceptance. It appears North American cable providers are reaping the benefits of a consumer market looking for less expensive phone service coupled with added features and ease of billing.
continues to grow in Canada and the U.S. This is significant to note, as recent press surrounding providers such as SunRocket and Vonage (News - Alert) would lead one to believe that VoIP was not enjoying widespread acceptance. It appears North American cable providers are reaping the benefits of a consumer market looking for less expensive phone service coupled with added features and ease of billing.Another interesting statistic is that while Canadian mobile carriers offer wireless coverage to over 98% of the population, only 58% of Canadians were mobile phone customers.
In the U.S., broadband penetration stands at 50%, but VoIP and Fiber to the Home (FttH) offerings are enjoying feverish growth. In large part due to Verizon’s (News - Alert) FiOS offering, FttH grew at triple-digit rates last year.
Canada
- In 2006, the Canadian mobile and broadband sectors continued to enjoy double-digit revenue growth rates.
- During 2006, mobile subscribers increased by approximately 10%, compared with a 17% increase during 2005.
- Although Canada’s wireless carriers offered coverage to more than 98% of the population, only 58% of all Canadians were mobile phone customers.
- Broadband subscribers reached 7.7 million by end 2006, placing Canada ninth in the world in terms of broadband penetration.
- Drivers include the rapidly increasing growth of VoIP services: Cable VoIP experienced significant subscriber growth in 2006, growing from around 270,000 to nearly 1.1 million subscribers.
USA
- Fixed-line revenue continued to decline during 2006, by approximately 3%, whilst mobile revenues grew by around 14%, driven largely by increased SMS and other data revenues and by increased minutes of use.
- Broadband continued to experience strong growth, with broadband penetration exceeding 50% of households. With over 60 million broadband subscribers, the USA boasts the world’s largest broadband market.
- At current DSL growth rates, the number of DSL subscribers is expected to exceed the number of cable subscribers during 2008.
- Verizon is leading the deployment of FttH networks, with the number of U.S. communities being connected by fiber growing at approximately 100% per annum.
- The number of homes passed with FttH by early 2007 approached eight million, of which around 1.3 million were connected, a take-up rate of over 15%.
- By end 2006, there were approximately 230 million mobile subscribers, up 10% from the previous year, amounting to a 72% penetration rate.
- VoIP continues to grow rapidly, reaching approximately 16 million subscribers by end 2006.
Paul Budde Communication is an independent global telecommunications research and consultancy company, with 45 national and international researchers in 15 countries. The company operates from Bucketty, in the Lower Hunter Valley, Australia.
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