2018 Global Fixed Broadband - Analyses, Statistics and Regional Overviews

Last updated: 10 Sep 2018 Update History

Report Status: Archived

Report Pages: 178

Lead Analyst: Kylie Wansink

Contributing Analyst: Henry Lancaster

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Summary
Table Of Contents

Publication Overview

On a global level fixed broadband penetration varies greatly and there are some markets which have large subscriber bases (e.g. China) and there are other markets which have large mobile penetrations but very low fixed broadband (Kuwait). It is important to have both infrastructure types and in many ways it is actually more important to have high-speed fixed broadband infrastructure, based on fibre. In this report BuddeComm explores this topic and offers a comparison of various countries “telecoms maturity” based on having both high levels of mobile and fixed broadband penetration. It incorporates BuddeComm’s Telecoms Maturity Index which measures and ranks the maturity of a country’s telecoms industry on a scale of 1 to 100. The report also provides valuable information, analyses and statistics on the overall global fixed broadband industry.

Subjects include:

Global fixed broadband analyses;
Key global fixed broadband industry statistics (subscribers, speeds, technologies);
Analyses of fixed broadband in relation to cuber-security;
Case study on a global leader: South Korea;
Regional fixed broadband market overviews for Africa, Asia, Latin America (including Caribbean), the Middle East, North America and the Pacific region (Australia);
Comparison of the maturity of telecom markets around the world using BuddeComm’s unique “Telecoms Maturity Index” (TMI) for Africa; Asia; Europe; Latin America and The Middle East.

Researchers:- Kylie Wansink, Henry Lancaster, Phil Harpur.
Current publication date:- September 2018 (15th Edition)

Executive Summary

Fixed broadband penetration varies vastly around the world

Many countries around the world have developed sophisticated mobile networks which are more than adequate for day-to-day communications and mobile broadband internet access. This is particularly evident in many of the emerging markets where mobile networks have thrived in contrast to the slow development of fixed broadband infrastructure. On the horizon is 5G, which is expected to significantly improve mobile services even further in terms of speed, capacity and latency.

With mobile networks becoming so sophisticated, it can be easy to wonder why it is still important to continue to invest in fixed broadband. It requires vision and the acknowledgement that there are important services emerging for society which depend on high quality broadband infrastructure. Examples include e-health, e-education, e-business, digital media, e-government, smart meters and smart city development. Fibre-based infrastructure which provides reliable high-speed broadband access is required to underpin the services which can help solve many of today’s social, economic and sustainability problems.

Most homes in the developed markets have both mobile and fixed broadband subscriptions. When out of the home, consumers connect to the mobile broadband network using 3G and in many cases 4G LTE or free Wi-Fi. Most heavy broadband usage on smartphones and tablets takes place in homes, offices, airports, schools, universities, internet cafes, etc.

In many of these situations the Wi-Fi networks are used for this, not the mobile networks - and all of these Wi- Fi modems are linked to the fixed network. The increased use of broadband access from tablets and smartphones will increase demand for fixed broadband access, and so the enormous appetite for mobile broadband will only increase the need for FttP networks.

With this in mind, it is encouraging to see that many of the emerging markets which rely heavily on mobile infrastructure are now seriously investing in fixed broadband infrastructure and developing national broadband strategies. In addition, many emerging markets are supportive of government initiatives to develop international high-speed links and are welcoming the opportunity to connect with large submarine and terrestrial cable systems.

BuddeComm has always maintained that mobile infrastructure and fibre infrastructure are both essential to our societies. This report provides analyses on this topic, combined with global industry statistics related to fixed broadband. The report also provides valuable insights into how fixed broadband is developing around the world, supported by regional overviews. It incorporates BuddeComm’s Telecoms Maturity Index for some regions and this measures and ranks the maturity of a country’s telecoms industry on a scale of 1 to 100, taking fixed broadband penetration into account. All countries are placed into one of three categories: Market Leaders, Market Challengers and Market Laggards, according to their Market Index score. Comparisons are also made between the mobile broadband and fixed broadband penetration of the various countries which comprise the regions of Africa; Asia; Europe; Latin America and The Middle East.

Key developments:

Fibre-based broadband infrastructure doesn't have the capacity limitations that the mobile sector is struggling to manage.
5G will also require access to a fibre optic backbone in order to provide the affordable high-speed services which will emerge.
Use of international bandwidth has tripled since 2014 with content providers being one of the largest consumers.
In 2018 the majority of countries around the world now have a National Broadband plan or policy in place.
Asia continues to represent a massive presence in the global broadband market in terms of fixed (and mobile broadband) services.
China, South Korea and the USA offer some of the largest subscribers bases and/or fast average fixed broadband speeds.
Deployments based on Fibre-to-the-Premises (FttP) will continue to gain momentum as many countries continue to develop their National Broadband Networks (NBNs).
We are getting close to having 1 billion fixed broadband subscriptions globally.

Kylie Wansink

September 2018

Global fixed broadband market overview

Introduction
National Broadband Networks (NBN) are important

Broadband equals healthcare infrastructure
Broadband equals utility infrastructure
Broadband equals education infrastructure
Broadband equals media and e-business infrastructure
Broadband equals smart cities
IoT and M2M require broadband

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)
Demand for FttP is growing
Fixed and mobile broadband are both required
FttH plays a role in 5G
A positive outlook for backbone infrastructure

International bandwidth usage

International IP wholesale market

Global submarine cable overview

Dark fibre - in a growth phase again

Global fixed broadband statistics

Broadband subscribers and penetration
Broadband access technologies
Broadband speeds

Case study - South Korea is a global broadband leader
Robust infrastructure will help with cyber-security

Cyber-security issues
Infrastructure issues

How safe is FttH?

E-security/cyber-security spending

Regional market overviews

Africa

Market overview and analysis
Africa Telecoms Maturity Index

Asia

Market overview and analysis
Asian Telecoms Maturity Index

Europe

Market overview and analysis
Europe Telecom Maturity Index by tier

Latin America

Market overview and analysis
Latin America Telecom Maturity Index by tier
TMI versus GDP
Fixed and mobile broadband penetration

Middle East

Market overview and analysis
TMI versus GDP
Middle East mobile and mobile broadband penetration
Middle East fixed and mobile broadband penetration
GCC countries fixed and mobile broadband penetration

North America

USA
Canada

Pacific

Australia

List of Tables

Table 1 – Global Internet Bandwidth Growth by Tb/s – 2010 – 2017
Table 2 – Global - Internet users and annual change – 2010 – 2018
Table 3 – Global - fixed broadband subscribers – 2005 – 2018
Table 4 – Regional – fixed broadband subscriptions – 2017
Table 5 – Top 10 countries by fixed broadband subscribers and global market share – 2017
Table 6 – Global - broadband market share by access technology – 2013; 2016
Table 7 – Top 10 countries by average broadband connection speeds – Q1 2017
Table 8 – Global – average broadband speed by mb/s – 2012 – 2018
Table 9 – Top 10 countries by high broadband connectivity of above 10Mb/s – 2015; 2016
Table 10 – Top 10 countries by high broadband connectivity of above 15Mb/s – 2016
Table 11 – South Korea - fixed broadband subscribers and penetration (with Forecast) – 2007 – 2022
Table 12 – Global IT security spending – 2011 – 2018
Table 13 – Global IT security spending by segment – 2018
Table 14 – Africa – Internet users – 2013 – 2017
Table 15 – Africa – Fixed broadband subscribers – 2013 – 2017
Table 16 – Africa – Fixed broadband penetration (%) – 2013 – 2017
Table 17 – Asia – fixed broadband subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2018
Table 18 – Asian countries – Internet users - 2011 – 2017
Table 19 – Asian countries – Internet user penetration - 2011 – 2017
Table 20 – Asian countries – fixed broadband subscribers - 2011 – 2017
Table 21 – Asian countries – fixed broadband penetration - 2011 – 2017
Table 22 – Top fifteen countries in Asia by fixed broadband subscribers – 2011 – 2017
Table 23 – Top fifteen countries in Asia by fixed broadband penetration – 2011 – 2017
Table 24 – USA - Historic - Internet users and penetration – 2000 – 2009
Table 25 – USA - Internet users and penetration – 2010 – 2016
Table 26 – USA - Historic - Broadband subscribers and penetration – 2000 – 2009
Table 27 – USA - Broadband subscribers and penetration – 2010 – 2017
Table 28 – Canada - Retail broadband market revenue – 2001 – 2018
Table 29 – Canada - Broadband availability through Economic Action Plan – 2010 – 2012
Table 30 – Canada - DSL and cable broadband subscribers – 2001 – 2018
Table 31 – Canada - Fixed-line broadband subscribers and penetration – 2004 – 2018
Table 32 – Canada - Proportion of fixed broadband subscribers by data rate – 2011 – 2018
Table 33 – Canada - Household broadband availability by platform – 2012 – 2018
Table 34 – Canada - Household broadband availability by data rate – 2011 – 2018
Table 35 – Canada - Market share of internet subscribers by platform – 2010 – 2018
Table 36 – Canada - Fixed broadband traffic by subscriber – 2011 – 2017
Table 37 – Canada - Broadband ARPU – 2012 – 2018
Table 38 – Australia - Number of ISPs by size in the Australian market – 2008 – 2017
Table 39 – Australia - Total Broadband Subscribers – Fixed vs Wireless – 2011 – 2017
Table 40 – Australia - Total Broadband Subscribers – Fixed vs Wireless, annual growth – 2012 – 2017
Table 41 – Australia - Total Broadband Subscribers – Fixed vs Wireless, market share – 2011 – 2017
Table 42 – Australia - Historic - Total broadband subscribers and annual change – 2000 – 2011
Table 43 – Australia - Total Broadband Subscribers by Access Type – 2011 – 2017
Table 44 – Australia - Total Broadband Subscribers by Access Type, annual growth – 2012 – 2017
Table 45 – Australia - Total Broadband Subscribers by Access Type, market share – 2011 – 2017
Table 46 – Australia - Fixed Broadband Subscribers – DSL, Cable, Fibre – 2011 – 2017
Table 47 – Australia - Historic - Broadband market share by technology – 2008 – 2015

List of Charts

Chart 1 – South Korea - fixed broadband subscribers and penetration (with Forecast) – 2007 – 2022
Chart 2 – Africa Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Leaders (top tier)
Chart 3 – Africa Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Challengers (middle tier)
Chart 4 – Africa Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Laggards (bottom tier)
Chart 5 – Asian Telecoms Maturity Index by Market Category
Chart 6 – Asian Telecoms Maturity Index vs GDP per Capita
Chart 7 – Asian Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Leaders Category
Chart 8 – Asian Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Challengers Category
Chart 9 – Asian Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Laggards Category
Chart 10 – Europe Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Leaders (top tier)
Chart 11 – Europe Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Challengers (middle tier)
Chart 12 – Europe Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Laggards (bottom tier)
Chart 13 – Latin America –Overall Telecoms Maturity Index
Chart 14 – Latin America Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Leaders Category
Chart 15 – Latin America Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Challengers Category
Chart 16 – Latin America Telecoms Maturity Index – Market Laggards Category
Chart 17 – South America –Telecoms Maturity Index by country
Chart 18 – Central America –Telecoms Maturity Index by country
Chart 19 – Caribbean Telecoms Maturity Index by country
Chart 20 – Latin America Telecoms Maturity Index vs GDP per Capita
Chart 21 – Caribbean Telecoms Maturity Index vs GDP per Capita
Chart 22 – Latin America fixed broadband penetration versus mobile broadband penetration
Chart 23 – Caribbean fixed broadband penetration versus mobile broadband penetration
Chart 24 – Middle East - Telecoms Maturity Index – 2017
Chart 25 – Middle East - Telecoms Maturity Index vs GDP per Capita – 2017
Chart 26 – Middle East – mobile subscriber penetration versus mobile broadband penetration – 2017
Chart 27 – GCC members – fixed broadband penetration versus mobile broadband penetration – 2017
Chart 28 – GCC members – fixed broadband penetration versus mobile broadband penetration – 2017
Chart 29 – USA - broadband subscribers and penetration – 2010 – 2017
Chart 30 – Canada - DSL and cable broadband subscribers – 2001 – 2018
Chart 31 – Canada - Fixed-line broadband subscribers and penetration – 2004 – 2018
Chart 32 – Canada - Fixed broadband traffic by subscriber – 2011 – 2017
Chart 33 – Australia - Total Broadband Subscribers – Fixed vs Wireless – 2011 – 2017
Chart 34 – Australia - Fixed Broadband Subscribers –DSL, Cable, Fibre – 2011 – 2017

List of Exhibits

Exhibit 1 – Africa - Generalised Market Characteristics by Market Segment
Exhibit 2 – Asia - Key Market Characteristics by Market Segment
Exhibit 3 – Europe - Generalised Market Characteristics by Market Segment
Exhibit 4 – Latin America - Generalised Market Characteristics by Market Segment
Exhibit 5 – South America - Key Characteristics of Telecoms Markets by Country
Exhibit 6 – Central America - Key Characteristics of Telecoms Markets by Country
Exhibit 7 – Caribbean - Key Characteristics of Telecoms Markets by Select Country
Exhibit 8 – Middle East - Key characteristics of telecoms markets by country
Exhibit 9 – Middle East - Generalised Market Characteristics by Market Segment

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2018 Global Fixed Broadband - Analyses, Statistics and Regional Overviews

Purchase this Report

Fixed broadband penetration varies vastly around the world

Key developments:

Global fixed broadband market overview

International bandwidth usage

Global submarine cable overview

Global fixed broadband statistics

Case study - South Korea is a global broadband leader

Robust infrastructure will help with cyber-security

Regional market overviews

Purchase this Report

Share this Report

TMT Intelligence

A platform to scale your intelligence tasks

Research Methodology

Hot Topics

News & Views