2023.03.03- Open Broadband News

Report: Fiber is king in half of OECD countries, cable still top in U.S.

Cable is the leading fixed broadband access technology in the United States, while fiber is king in exactly half of the 38 countries tracked by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The United States was 21st out of 38 countries in terms of fiber deployment.

Cable, which grew by 2% in the year between June 2021 and last June, was the leading fixed broadband technology in seven other countries. Cable, OECD said, is declining in 18 countries.

Fiber subscriptions grew by 12.3% during the year-long period assessed by the OCED Broadband Portal. The growth rate was a bit slower than for the previous 12-month period.

Fiber accounts for 36% of fixed broadband subscriptions compared to 22% five years ago, OECD said.

Seven countries have fiber percentages of more than 70%. The top three are Korea (87%), Japan (84%) and Spain (81%). The highest growth rates are in Belgium (87%), Costa Rica (51%), the United Kingdom (47%), Ireland (40%), Chile (35%), and Colombia (32%).

GSMA: 30 countries to launch 5G services in 2023

Figures from GSMA Intelligence show 5G connections are expected to double over the next two years, expedited by technological innovations and new 5G network deployments in more than 30 countries in 2023 alone. Of the new networks to be deployed in 2023, it is expected that 15 will be 5G Standalone networks.

The forecast announced during MWC Barcelona 2023, point to a significant period of growth in terms of mobile subscribers and enterprise adoption. Consumer connections surpassed one billion at the end of 2022 and will increase to around 1.5 billion this year – before reaching two billion by the end 2025. This momentum confirms 5G as the fastest generational roll-out, when compared to 3G and 4G.

“Until now, 5G adoption has been driven by relatively mature markets and consumer use cases like enhanced mobile broadband, but that’s changing. We’re now entering a second wave for 5G that will see the technology engage a diverse set of new markets and audiences,” said Peter Jarich, Head of GSMA Intelligence. “The extension to new use cases and markets will challenge the mobile ecosystem to prove that 5G truly is flexible enough to meet these diverse demands in a way that’s both inclusive and innovative.”

China fixed communication remains stagnant

The total fixed communications services revenue in China is expected to see a Compound Average Growth Rate (CAGR) of 0.5% from $276 billion in 2022 to $283 billion in 2027, mainly due to drop in average revenue per user (ARPU) levels, according to GlobalData.

GlobalData’s China Fixed Communication Forecast (Q4 2022) reveals that fixed voice and fixed broadband service lines will expand at a CAGR of 0.6% and 1.5%, respectively, over the forecast period. However, both voice telephony and broadband ARPU levels will drop considerably over the forecast period thereby dragging the overall revenue growth in the market.

Pradeepthi Kantipudi, Telecom Analyst at GlobalData, said: “Fiber will remain the leading broadband technology in terms of subscription share through the forecast period driven by the government’s support. For instance, the government’s initiative for the implementation of Dual Gigabit Network Coordinated Development Action Plan (2021-2023) aims to improve broadband connectivity and expand fiber-optic networks further in the country.”

Portuguese comms market: the stats

The overwhelming majority (93%) of Portuguese households had some form of electronic communications service in 2022.

According to a report by the regulator ANACOM, the highest number (87.9%) was Pay-TV, followed by fixed internet access (82.6%) and fixed telephony (73.1%). Meanwhile, mobile broadband via phones, PCs, tablets, pen or router was used by 48.3% of households.

In 2022, 85.6% of households had bundled services. Pay-TV was the most subscribed service in bundled offers (93.9% of households with bundled services), followed by fixed broadband (90.8%) and fixed telephony (78.2%).

The Lisbon metropolitan area, Azores and Madeira had the highest proportion of households with access to fixed electronic communication and bundled services.

In the case of Pay-TV and bundled services, the figure stood at over 90%.

EC faces criticism over ‘who pays for broadband’ consultation

Telecom companies have long lobbied for big tech companies such as Facebook and Netflix to pay a ‘fair share’ of upgrade costs as they account for the buik of traffic on their networks. The EC has bowed to that pressure with a 12-week consultation on who should pay and how.

The preamble to the relevant section of the consultation document notes that “the amount of data exchanged – and harvested – is larger than ever and will increase, as the global consumer internet traffic has grown with 34.4 % CAGR since 2015”.

Players including Facebook owner Meta have criticised the proposals, arguing that the already contribute via investments in hosting content and bring value to the industry as a whole. The Washington-based the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation’s chief Joe Kane meanwhile weighed in against any move to make users pay.

“The Internet ecosystem relies on negotiated agreements between broadband providers and content companies. Both sides of the market serve consumers best when deals can be struck without the government putting its thumb on the scale in favor of ISPs or content companies,” said Kane.